Exploring the association between parental anti-fat attitudes and restrictive feeding practices in a British and Irish sample.

Parental restriction of food intake has been associated with heightened eating disorder psychopathology in some longitudinal research. Yet, relatively little is known about the determinants of restrictive feeding practices. This cross-sectional study explored the association between parents' anti-fat attitudes and their use of restrictive feeding practices in a mixed British (41.10% England, 39.90% Scotland, 4.20% Other) and Irish (14.80%) sample. Parents and caregivers (N = 472; 94.10% female; 70.90% university level education) of children between the ages of 4-8 (48.20% female; 91.10% rated as "normal weight" by their parents) completed self-report questionnaires assessing their anti-fat attitudes (dislike, fear, and blame subscales), use of restrictive feeding practices (for weight control, health purposes, and covert restriction), and how influential their child's body-weight and -shape is for their perception of themselves as parents. Overall, our hypothesis that parental anti-fat attitudes would be significantly associated with restrictive feeding practices was supported. Anti-fat attitudes related to disliking higher body-weight people and blaming parents for their child's weight were significant predictors of all forms of restrictive feeding (all ps < .05). However, anti-fat attitudes related to fearing being a higher body-weight were not significant predictors of restrictive feeding for the purposes of health nor for covert restriction (ps > .05). Additionally, our hypothesis that the associations between anti-fat attitudes and restrictive feeding practices would be stronger for parents for whom their child's body-weight and -shape more strongly influenced how they judged themselves as parents was not supported (the interaction term was not significant in two out of three analyses). Future research is needed to investigate these associations across time and in samples of higher body-weight children.

Case study: Nutrition and hydration status during 4,254 km of running over 78 consecutive days.

The aims of this study were to assess the dietary intake and monitor self-reported recovery quality and clinical symptomology of a male ultra-endurance runner who completed a multiday ultra-endurance running challenge covering 4,254 km from North Scotland to the Moroccan Sahara desert over 78 consecutive days. Food and fluid intakes were recorded and analyzed through dietary analysis software. Body mass (BM) was determined before and after running each day, and before sleep. Clinical symptomology and perceived recovery quality were recorded each day. Whole blood hemoglobin and serum ferritin were determined before and after the challenge. Total daily energy (mean ± SD: 23.2 ± 3.2 MJ · day(-1)) and macronutrient intake (182 ± 31 g · day(-1) protein, 842 ± 115 g · day(-1) carbohydrate, 159 ± 55 g · day(-1) fat) met consensus nutritional guidelines for endurance performance. Total daily water intake through foods and fluids was 4.8 ± 2.0 L · day(-1). Water and carbohydrate intake rates during running were 239 ± 143 ml · h(-1) and 56 ± 19 g · h(-1), respectively. Immediately after running, carbohydrate and protein intakes were 1.3 ± 1.0 g · kg BM(-1) and 0.4 ± 0.2 g · kg BM(-1), respectively. Daily micronutrient intakes ranged from 109 to 662% of UK RNIs. Prerunning BM was generally maintained throughout. Overall exercise-induced BM loss averaged 0.8 ± 1.0%; although BM losses of ≥ 2% occurred in the latter stages, a reflection of the warmer climate. Varying degrees of self-reported perceived recovery quality and clinical symptomology occurred throughout the challenge. This case study highlights oscillations in dietary habits along 78 consecutive days of ultra-endurance running, dependent on changes in ambient conditions and course topography. Nevertheless, nutrition and hydration status were maintained throughout the challenge. Despite dietary iron intake above RNI and iron supplementation, this alone did not prevent deficiency symptoms.