Readiness to change among parents of overweight/obese children in Saudi Arabia and influencing factors

BACKGROUND: Pediatric overweight/obesity is a major health problem worldwide. Accurate parental perception of children’s weight status is crucial in preventing and tackling this issue. Despite the consistent increase in prevalence of the childhood obesity in Saudi Arabia, the role of the parents is not well described. This study aims to explore Saudi parents’ readiness to change the lifestyle of their overweight/obese children and the barriers facing it. INDIVIDUALS AND METHODS: Through a cross-sectional design, 362 parents of overweight/obese children attending King Abdulla Specialized Children’s Hospital were selected and requested to fill a predesigned questionnaire reflecting their perception about their children’s weight status and their preparedness to change their lifestyle. A Chi-square test was used to verify significance. A P value of <0.05 was considered an indication of significance. RESULTS: Among all overweight/obese children (n = 362), obese children formed 39.5 and 22.7% had morbid obesity. Only one half of the parents (49.7%) had correct perception about their children’s weight. Correct perception increases significantly with an increase age of the child and in the presence of family history of diabetes, P < 0.05. Only 68.9% were worried about body weight of their children, the percentage was significantly higher in younger parents; parents with obese children and with a positive family history of hypertension P < 0.05. In total, 83.1% of the worried parents proceeded to preparation and action stages; the percentage was significantly higher among parents whom their children were free from identified comorbidities, P < 0.05. CONCLUSION: Misconception about real weight status of overweight/obese children is common in Saudi parents. Parents who have correct perception and worried about health status of their children are more likely to take actions. The first step in controlling children’s obesity is to educate parents about how to recognize the real weight status of their children and to be aware about the health-related problems of obesity.