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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Health and Nutrition
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1494222
This article is part of the Research Topic Health and Nutrition in The First 1000 Days of Life View all 5 articles

Analysis of Urban-rural Differences in the Relationship between Grandparenting and the Nutrition and Health Status of Children Aged 0 to 3 in China

Provisionally accepted
Lili Li Lili Li Zhenyu Zhang Zhenyu Zhang *Shili Tian Shili Tian Xueting Shi Xueting Shi
  • Northwest A&F University, Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: The practice of grandparents taking on the role of primary caregivers for their grandchildren is widespread across both urban and rural regions in China. Yet, the existing body of research offered limited clarity on how grandparenting associated with nutrition as well as health of children aged 0-3 years, particularly in terms of potential differences between urban and rural areas in China. Therefore, this study aims to delve into the association between grandparenting and nutrition as well as health status of children aged 0-3 and its urban-rural differences in China. Methods: This study draws on data from 1,028 children aged 0 to 3 years and their families, collected through the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) in 2020. Nutrition and health status of children aged 0 to 3 was assessed based on the indicators of malnutrition, medical consultations due to illness and developmental delay. Parental reports were used to determine the extent of grandparenting, which any caregiving arrangement involving grandparents, whether during daytime, nighttime, or both, were categorized as grandparenting. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted to explore the association between grandparenting and nutrition as well as health outcomes of children aged 0 to 3. Results: Regression analysis results indicated that grandparenting is positively associated with malnutrition (OR 1.323; 95% CI 1.008, 1.735), medical consultation for illness (OR 1.382; 95% CI 1.058, 1.804), and developmental delay (OR 1.502; 95% CI 1.508, 2.134)) in children aged 0 to 3 years. The above association has been proven to be evident in rural settings, whereas it was not significant in urban environments. Conclusion: Grandparenting exhibits a negative association with nutrition and health status of children aged 0 to 3. It is imperative for parents to consider their children’ s caregiving arrangements carefully, and foster nutrition and health status of children from birth to 3 years old actively.

    Keywords: grandparenting, nutrition and health, Urban, rural, China

    Received: 10 Sep 2024; Accepted: 20 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Li, Zhang, Tian and Shi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Zhenyu Zhang, Northwest A&F University, Xianyang, 712100, Shaanxi Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.