Perception gaps in physical activity and nutrition among parents and their obese children in Georgia: A pilot camp intervention

Background: Discrepant perceptions of nutrition/physical activity among obese children within child-mother diads may hinder weight control. We examined perception gaps between obese 8-12 yo children and their mothers.

Methods: The Camp Vita pilot comprised a 5-day residential program for obese children, sandwiched by family weekends. The Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-History (NASH) examined food choices (FC), meal patterns (MP) and physical activity (PA) pre/post camp using a 4-point scale. Mothers' perceptions of themselves and their child and campers perceptions of themselves were collected.

Results: Eighteen families attended weekend-1 and camp; 12 attended weekend-2. At baseline, mean child scores were 2.58, 2.84, 2.10 and mean maternal scores for their child were 2.78, 3.10, 2.50 for FC, MP, and PA respectively. Increases in children's self-report of FC and MP post-camp scores were smaller than those of mothers (child ΔFC=0.20, ΔMP=0.26; parent ΔFC=0.39, ΔMP=0.92). Increases in children's self-reported PA were larger than those of mothers (child ΔPA=0.40; parent ΔPA=0.11). Mothers' reports of their own change in FC correlated with their reports of changes in their children's FC (r²=0.40). No such correlation occurred for MP or PA.

Conclusions: Camp positively affected campers' and mothers' perceptions of the child's lifestyle. More than children, mothers believed their children's diets were improved. More than mothers, children believed their physical activity improved. Mothers did not consistently correlate their own perceived improvements with those of their child. We conclude objective measures are needed to monitor progress with weight control. Camp programs should include families to address perception gaps.