Fathers who improved their diet quality during adolescence were more likely to demonstrate healthy food parenting behaviors and had children with better dietary habits, according to a cohort analysis of 669 participants.
In the study, investigators drew on data from the Growing Up Today Study–Fathers & Families (GUTS-F&F), a 30-year cohort. Participants were fathers whose children were 1 to 6 years of age as of 2021 to 2022 and had completed at least two dietary assessments between 10 and 18 years.
The investigators evaluated adolescent diet quality using the Healthy Eating Index 2020, which measures adherence to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Through sequence analysis and hierarchical clustering, three diet quality trajectories were identified: low adherence (44.1%), declining adherence (39.8%), and increasing adherence (16.1%).
Fathers in the increasing adherence group had higher odds of practicing supportive food parenting behaviors later in life. They were more likely to model healthy eating (odds ratio [OR] = 1.90, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.23–2.95) and monitor their children’s food intake (OR = 1.60, 95% CI=1.05–2.45) compared with those in the low adherence group.
Food parenting practices were assessed across four domains: modeling, monitoring, food environment, and encouraging dietary balance and variety. These were self-reported during the GUTS-F&F follow-up.
Children’s diets were also evaluated, focusing on fruit, vegetable, fast food, and sweetened beverage consumption. Children of fathers in the increasing adherence group had the highest adherence to dietary guidelines for fruit (62%) and vegetable (38%) intake. In comparison, children of fathers in the low adherence group had lower adherence (54% fruit and 29% vegetables), and those in the declining group had the lowest (53% fruit and 23% vegetables).
All models adjusted for paternal age, ethnicity, and educational level. Ordinal logistic regression was used to assess associations, with model fit evaluated via the Brant test.
The results suggested that adolescent dietary patterns may influence future food parenting practices and children’s nutritional outcomes. The investigators underscored the relevance of adolescent diet in shaping early childhood environments and supported further investigation into preconception health as a target for public health interventions.
The study was funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Disclosures were not made available at time of publishing.
Source: Nutrition 2025 Abstract
