Health disparities among children living in poverty underscore the importance of identifying risk and protective factors for childhood obesity. By applying a family stress framework with an equity lens, this study aimed to test the differential associations between maternal distress and child body mass index (BMI) in preschool-age children living in low-income families. Pre-intervention data from an obesity prevention randomized controlled trial were used to assess mother-reported parental distress and anthropometry collected from children and mothers in a diverse sample of 450 families enrolled in Head Start. Analyses examined associations between maternal distress and child BMI z-score (BMIz) and moderation by child sex. The sample of children was 49% female, 42% White, 25% Black, 11% Hispanic and 33% had overweight status or obesity. Results indicated higher BMIz for girls compared to boys (β = 0.10, p = 0.03). Child sex modified the association between maternal distress and child BMIz (β = 0.12, p = 0.01). Greater maternal distress was associated with higher BMIz among girls but not boys. Among preschoolers, the maternal distress–BMIz association differed by child sex. Understanding individual differences in how maternal distress relates to childhood obesity may have important implications for obesity prevention efforts.

中文翻译：

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生活在低收入家庭的学龄前儿童的孕产妇痛苦和体重指数

贫困儿童之间的健康差异凸显了确定儿童肥胖风险和保护因素的重要性。通过应用带有公平视角的家庭压力框架，本研究旨在测试低收入家庭的学龄前儿童的孕产妇痛苦与儿童体重指数（BMI）之间的差异关联。肥胖预防随机对照试验的干预前数据被用来评估母亲报告的父母痛苦，并从参加 Head Start 的 450 个家庭的不同样本中的儿童和母亲收集人体测量数据。分析检查了母亲痛苦与儿童体重指数 z 分数 (BMIz) 之间的关联以及儿童性别的调节。儿童样本中 49% 是女性，42% 是白人，25% 是黑人，11% 是西班牙裔，33% 患有超重或肥胖。结果表明，女孩的 BMIz 高于男孩（β  = 0.10，p  = 0.03）。儿童性别改变了母亲痛苦与儿童 BMIz 之间的关联（β  = 0.12，p  = 0.01）。对于女孩来说，更大的产妇痛苦与更高的BMIz相关，但与男孩无关。在学龄前儿童中，孕产妇痛苦与 BMIz 的关联因儿童性别而异。了解孕产妇痛苦与儿童肥胖之间关系的个体差异可能对肥胖预防工作具有重要意义。