AUTHOR=Mosli Rana H. , Barahim Alaa , Zahed Lina A. , Ishaq Sara A. , Al-Eryani Fatimah M. , Alharbi Warda A. , Kutbi Hebah A. , Saleemani Haneen 

TITLE=Changes in Feeding Behavior and Feeding Stress Among Mothers of Preschoolers Before and During the Novel Coronavirus Pandemic

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2022.828557

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2022.828557

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=Objective: To examine changes in maternal feeding behaviors (MFB) and maternal feeding stress (MFS) among mothers of preschoolers in Saudi Arabia before and during the novel coronavirus pandemic. 
Methods: This is a prospective cohort study including 64 mothers of preschoolers who were drawn from a sample of a 2019 study. Study questionnaire was completed during November-December 2020. MFB were assessed using the Child Feeding Questionnaire-Arabic (CFQ-A) and MFS was assessed using the MFS-mealtimes index and the MFS-maternal resentment/difficult child index. Paired samples t-tests were used to examine changes in MFB and MFS. 
Results: Mothers have reported an increase in perceived responsibility (M= 4.09, SD= 0.87 vs. M= 4.33, SD= 0.59, P-value<0.05) and monitoring (M=4.23, SD=0.73 vs. M= 4.48, SD=0.66, P-value<0.05) during the pandemic period compared to the period prior to the pandemic. Mothers have reported a decrease in use of food as a reward (M=4.11, SD= 0.87 vs. M=2.30, SD=0.88, P-value<0.001) and concern about child’s diet (M=3.34, SD= 1.12 vs. M= 2.55, SD=1.04, P-value <0.001). There was an increase in MFS-maternal resentment/difficult child (M=2.47, SD=0.68 vs. M=2.71, SD=0.72, P-value<0.01). 
Conclusions: Findings can help inform future research aiming to measure the long-term effects of the pandemic on child outcomes.