Childhood obesity in China: Does grandparents' coresidence matter? 2018

Qinying He, and Xun Li, and Rui Wang
College of Economics and Management, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, 510642, China.

Childhood obesity in China has been increasingly cited as a major public health issue in recent decades. The effect of grandparents on grandchildren's weight outcome is under-analyzed. Using data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey, we examine the effect of grandparents' coresidence on childhood weight outcome with a sample of 2-13-year-old children in China. We use instrumental variables to address the potential endogeneity of grandparents' coresidence. We show that the effect of grandparents' coresidence on childhood weight outcome is significantly positive. Grandparents' coresidence affects a grandchild's weight outcome through changes in dietary patterns and physical activity. The effects on dietary patterns exist in urban areas and significantly lower in rural areas. Grandparents' coresidence decreases physical activity more in rural areas than in urban areas. Furthermore, the effects of coresidence on protein intake and physical activities of children above 6 are significantly higher for males than females. A robustness check, including an ordered logit model with a body mass index category and estimation with additional data, validates our findings.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009749 Nutrition Surveys A systematic collection of factual data pertaining to the nutritional status of a human population within a given geographic area. Data from these surveys are used in preparing NUTRITION ASSESSMENTS. NHANES,National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey,Nutritional Surveys,Nutrition Survey,Nutritional Survey,Survey, Nutrition,Survey, Nutritional,Surveys, Nutrition,Surveys, Nutritional
D012111 Residence Characteristics Elements of residence that characterize a population. They are applicable in determining need for and utilization of health services. Community,Domicile,Living Arrangements,Neighborhood,Place of Birth,Residential Selection,Arrangement, Living,Birth Place,Communities,Domiciles,Living Arrangement,Neighborhoods,Residence Characteristic
D001835 Body Weight The mass or quantity of heaviness of an individual. It is expressed by units of pounds or kilograms. Body Weights,Weight, Body,Weights, Body
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D002681 China A country spanning from central Asia to the Pacific Ocean. Inner Mongolia,Manchuria,People's Republic of China,Sinkiang,Mainland China
D004032 Diet Regular course of eating and drinking adopted by a person or animal. Diets
D004044 Dietary Proteins Proteins obtained from foods. They are the main source of the ESSENTIAL AMINO ACIDS. Proteins, Dietary,Dietary Protein,Protein, Dietary
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man

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