The Relationship between Self-efficacy and Weight Status of Mothers and Their Perception of Their Child's Overweight and Obesity

Several studies have shown that parents of overweight/obese children sometimes perceive their child's weight as normal. This can affect their level of concern and follow ups to correct their child's weight. This study aimed to evaluate association between maternal weight status and self-efficacy in controlling child’s weight-related behavior with their perception of their child's weight status. A total of 159 overweight/obese first grade students and their mothers from two districts of Tehran city were studied. Their height and weight were measured, and maternal BMI and children's BMI z-scores were calculated. Socio-demographic characteristics of the family, mother's self-efficacy and perception of their child's weight were assessed by a questionnaire through interview. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate factors effecting mother's perception. Mean age of children was 6.7±0.34 years. Among the children, 20.1% were overweight and 79.9% were obese, while 48% and 35% of the mothers were overweight and obese, respectively. About 77% of the mothers had misperception about their child's weight status. There was no significant relationship between the mother's occupation, education and weight status with misperception of child weight. Maternal self-efficacy in controlling the child’s weight related behaviors was low in 23.8% of the mothers; while it was medium and high in 50.3 and 25.8%, respectively. There was a reverse but insignificant association between self-efficacy and weight status of children. Considering the critical role of parents, especially mothers in the process of child obesity management, informing mothers on the definition and importance of desirable body weight in children and proper means to combat it is a priority.