Mothers often have inaccurate perceptions of their children's body weight, s...( higher among women who perceived their...),Health

Overweight children were defined as those with weights at or above 85th percentile on developmental growth charts, adjusted for their age and height.

"As a society, we have a number of negative labels that we use to describe overweight people, and parents don't want their child to fall into that category. It often takes several visits to the pediatrician, communicating the same message before parents understand that overweight is an important issue for children," Fuentes-Afflick said.

The number of overweight children was significantly less likely among women who perceived their children had fair or poor health status and whose weight was perceived as too low, according to study findings.

'"/>

Contact: Phyllis Brown
pbrown@pubaff.ucsf.edu
415-476-2557
University of California - San Francisco
29-Apr-2006