Table 4 Content parents would like in a new resource for parents to encourage healthy eating and body image in children
Ideas mentioned by parents | Number of groups mentioning | Theme developed |
|---|---|---|
Strategies for encouraging healthy eating, which create minimal stress and overcome fussy eating | 9 | Healthy eating strategies |
Hiding food ideas | 1 | |
How to get variety in food | 2 | |
How to promote healthy habits around food (i.e., in the same way we have information about how to promote healthy sleep habits in children) | 5 | |
Importance of healthy eating (i.e., how to make it a priority) | 1 | Food & Nutrition |
Information on portion sizes | 2 | |
Nutrition information and how it relates to physical activity | 3 | |
Food pros/cons/substitutes (e.g., skim vs full cream milk) | 4 | |
Drinking water guidelines | 1 | |
Health risks/implications associated with eating ‘unhealthy’ foods | 3 | |
Ideas for healthy lunchbox | 2 | Recipe/Meal ideas |
Recipes/menus for healthy family meals | 7 | |
Strategies for parent modelling healthy eating & body image | 2 | Parent modelling |
How to encourage positive body image (e.g., building child self-confidence/resilience) | 8 | Strategies for promoting positive body image |
How to talk about food/body (especially knowing what not to say/how to avoid things that will make it bad) | 4 | |
How to teach child to accept differences in bodies | 2 | |
How to deal with external influences on body image (e.g., other adults, children’s parties) | 6 | Dealing with external influences on body image |
Media literacy strategies | 2 | |
What to do if child is over/underweight/not growing enough | 1 | Early detection/intervention strategies |
How to identify body image influences/risks & what to do about it | 4 |