Changes in parents’ time use and its relationship to child obesity

Objective:The aim was to explore any change in parents' time use together with theirchildren, changes in their perceived occupational value, and its relationshipto children's body mass index (BMI) over the course of a one-yearoccupation-focused family intervention. Method: The study sample consisted ofparticipants in one arm of a randomized controlled trial, involving mothers andfathers (n = 30) of 17 children aged 4–6 years who were considered obese. Datawere collected by time-geographical diaries during the intervention and bymeasuring the parents’ occupational value and the children's BMI before andafter the intervention. Results: At the end of the intervention, an increasewas shown in the amount of time parents spent together with their childrenduring weekdays (p = .042) and the parents perceived occupational value (p =.013). Children's BMI z-score changed with −0.11 units. Conclusion:Collaboration with parents may be useful in interventions aiming atfacilitating a normal weight development among children.