A formative study of grandparent caregivers' grandchild feeding responsibilities and practices

Background: In the US, grandparents are increasingly living with their grandchildren in multigenerational households and/or providing their grandchildren with regular childcare. However, our understanding of the potential for these grandparents to influence children's nutrition and weight status is limited. This formative study aimed to 1) describe the scope of caregiving grandparents' grandchild-focused food responsibilities and practices, including agreement and discordance with parents' food parenting practices, and 2) assess the internal reliability and acceptability of an adapted CFPQ to measure grandparents' food parenting practices. Methods: Thirty-two grandparents residing with and/or providing regular childcare for their 3 to 5-year-old grandchild enrolled. Data from interviews and closed-ended survey questions were analyzed to identify prevalent food-related responsibilities and practices. Grandparents also completed an adapted version of the CFPQ and provided feedback on applicability and face validity. Results: Over 80 % of grandparents were at least “sometimes” responsible for planning, preparing, and serving meals and snacks to their grandchild. Cooking, baking, and eating together were common. While many grandparents reported agreeing with their grandchild's parents' food parenting practices, others felt parents were either too lax or too strict. Only 5 of 12 subscales of the CFPQ demonstrated strong internal reliability when used with grandparents; some grandparents reported difficulty completing the CFPQ as they were not with the grandchildren for all eating occasions, and their feeding practices varied over time. Conclusion: Many caregiving grandparents have significant responsibility for their grandchildren's nutrition environments. Identifying how grandparents' food responsibilities and practices influence children's nutrition and weight status, independently and in conjunction with parents' practices, is a high priority. Grandparent-specific measures of food parenting are needed to advance this research.