Search

Parental allergic diseases and smoking influence respiratory disease in the offspring but it is not known whether they influence fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) in the offspring. We investigated whether parental allergic diseases, parental smoking and FeNO levels in parents were associated with FeNO levels in their offspring. We studied 609 offspring aged 16–47 years from the Respiratory Health in Northern Europe, Spain and Australia generation (RHINESSA) study with parental information from the Respiratory Health in Northern Europe (RHINE) III study and the European Community Respiratory Health Survey (ECRHS) III. Linear regression models were used to assess the association between offspring FeNO and parental FeNO, allergic rhinitis, asthma and smoking, while adjusting for potential confounding factors. Parental allergic rhinitis was significantly associated with higher FeNO in the offspring, both on the paternal and maternal side (percent change: 20.3 % [95%CI 5.0–37.7], p = 0.008, and 13.8 % [0.4–28.9], p = 0.043, respectively). Parental allergic rhinitis with asthma in any parent was also significantly associated with higher offspring FeNO (16.2 % [0.9–33.9], p = 0.037). However, parental asthma alone and smoking were not associated with offspring FeNO. Parental FeNO was not associated with offspring FeNO after full adjustments for offspring and parental factors. Parental allergic rhinitis but not parental asthma was associated with higher levels of FeNO in offspring. These findings suggest that parental allergic rhinitis status should be considered when interpreting FeNO levels in offspring beyond childhood. • Parental allergic rhinitis but not parental asthma is associated with higher levels of FeNO in offspring beyond childhood. • Parental smoking is not associated with FeNO in offspring beyond childhood. • Parental FeNO levels do not relate to offspring FeNO levels after taking into account offspring allergic disease/status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study was to explore the possible vulnerability (diathesis-stress), susceptibility (differential susceptibility), or vantage (vantage sensitivity) properties of COMT gen Val158Met polymorphism to adverse and favorable parenting styles from both parents in relation to children's reactive and proactive aggressive behavior. Within 279 eight-year-old children (125 girls and 154 boys) from Spain, reactive and proactive aggressive behavior was measured through the "Reactive and Proactive Questionnaire" (RPQ). Saliva samples were collected to genotype for the COMT Val158Met polymorphism via real-time PCR. Finally, parenting styles were assessed using the "Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire" (PSDQ). The results revealed that for boys, the Met allele was a vulnerability factor for proactive aggression in response to low-authoritative parenting from the father. For girls, it was the Val allele, the vulnerability variable to the high authoritarian style of the father, and the susceptibility factor to the authoritative style of the mother over proactive aggression. The results are discussed, considering possible sex differences. Our results indicate that the COMT Val158Met polymorphism is a biological variable that confers greater sensitivity to the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nursery schools and (full-time and part-time) parental leave are key resources used to ensure the work and family balance of Spanish families. This work examines how the use of unpaid parental leave influences nursery school attendance during the first three years of the child's life. Data from a 2012 survey on parental leave in Spain was used. Three multivariate logistic regression models were created to analyze factors associated with nursery school attendance. The results suggest that part-time parental leave has a positive relationship with nursery school attendance, revealing a relationship of complementarity; on the other hand, it is suggested that full-time parental leave is used as a substitute for nursery school attendance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Research has increased our understanding of the parental factors associated with the initiation and development of cannabis use disorder in adolescents, but few studies about this have been performed in middle- or low-income countries. Objective: First, to examine whether perceived past parental drug use, parental monitoring, and attitude toward adolescent cannabis use are associated with general and problematic cannabis use in Chilean adolescents. Second, to explore whether perceived past parental drug use weakens the associations of protective factors with general and problematic adolescent cannabis use. Methods: Regression analyses were performed on cross-sectional data from a multistage probabilistic sample stratified by clusters (municipalities, school and grade) of 43,060 students (47% male, mean age 15.5 years) from grades 8 to 12, which was collected from the Chilean National School Survey on Drug Use (2013). Results: Perceived past parental drug use increased the likelihood of adolescent cannabis use in general, but not its problematic use. Parental monitoring of adolescents' whereabouts and parental opposition to adolescent cannabis use decreased the likelihood of adolescent cannabis use in general, as well as problematic use. Perceived past parental drug use only interacted with parental monitoring of school activities. Conclusions: In line with research from the United States, the Netherlands and Spain, parental monitoring of adolescents' whereabouts and a strong parental opposition to cannabis use appear to be protective factors, irrespective of past parental use. However, the effectiveness of monitoring adolescents' school activities seems to decrease when parents are perceived as having used drugs in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Avian eggshell colouration might function as a post‐mating sexually selected signal of female quality, influencing male parental investment and, hence, reproductive success. This hypothesis has been tested for intrinsic eggshell pigments as biliverdin (blue‐green colouration) and/or protoporphyrin (brown coloured spots), but never for colourations applied post‐laying. Post‐laying staining colouration due to, for instance, uropygial secretion of the female could reflect its phenotypic properties and, thus, might be a cue for male investment in reproduction. In hoopoes, the uropygial gland of incubating females hosts symbiotic bacteria that are responsible for the brown colour of their uropygial secretion and of the eggshells, as they cover their bluish‐grey eggshells with gland secretion after laying. The secretion protects embryos from pathogenic trans‐shell infections and, thus, egg colouration may function as a cue or even as a post‐mating sexually selected signal of antimicrobial potential in hoopoes. In a wild hoopoe population breeding in nest boxes in Spain, we test this hypothesis by exploring whether egg colour predicts male parental investment. In accordance with the hypothesis, we found that the amount of food provided by males to incubating females was higher in nests with less saturated eggshell colours. This relationship was affected by female body condition. High quality females in terms of body condition and/or in secretion colour obtained better males in terms of provisioning effort during incubation. Given that eggshell saturation is negatively related to density of bacterial symbionts in uropygial secretions, one possibility is that males may regulate their parental investment in accordance to the expected characteristics of mutualistic bacteria hosted in uropygial glands and deposited on eggshells. We discuss alternative explanations for our results, concluding that the post‐mating sexual selection hypothesis is the most likely but experimental modification of egg colour is needed to test it further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored whether cortisol and testosterone moderate the effect of parenting style on children's aggressive behavior, in accordance with the diathesis-stress or differential susceptibility theory; i.e., whether children are vulnerable to negative parenting styles (diathesis-stress) or, in addition to this vulnerability, also benefit more from positive parenting (differential susceptibility). The sample group comprised 279 eight-year-old children (154 boys and 125 girls) from Spain. Aggressive behavior was assessed using the "Reactive and Proactive Questionnaire" (RPQ) and parenting styles were measured using the "Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire" (PSDQ). Additionally, three saliva samples were collected to measure testosterone and cortisol levels, which were analyzed using ELISA. The results revealed that girls' high testosterone levels moderated the association between mothers' authoritarian parenting style and reactive aggression. This result can be explained by the differential susceptibility model. None of the interactions were statistically significant in boys' proactive aggression. The study emphasizes the importance of investigating biological and social factors that may influence aggressive behavior. • Biopsychological study of child's aggression. • Examine hormones as moderators. • High testosterone is a susceptibility factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psychologists in schools can play an important role in developing policies and programs to promote healthy eating habits. This study analyses the contributions of family socioeconomic status, peer influence (schoolmates’ food consumption), and school-based nutrition interventions to explain adolescent eating behaviors. Data were obtained from the 2014 Health behaviour in school-aged children survey in Spain, with a sample of 6,851 adolescents (11- to 16-years-old). The results suggest that school-based healthy-eating programs could improve by considering parental education level and by implementing interventions focused on the peer social network. Policies that limit access to unhealthy products in schools – rather than simply offering healthy foods alongside unhealthy products – could be more effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores and puts together eight important factors influencing materialism in children aged 8-12 years using a large sample from Spain. An analysis of the relationship of this set of factors with children's materialism using structural equation modeling is provided as well. Results suggest that external influences are more important for Spanish children than family influences. Finally, the article provides a road map for practitioners as well as government agencies, and suggestions for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the influence of perceived parental sexual values, religiosity, and family environment on young adults' sexual values from the United States (n = 218), Spain (n = 240), Costa Rica (n = 172), and Peru (n = 105). On average, and across the four national groups, the messages young adults received from their parents about broad domains of sexual behaviors (masturbation, non-intercourse types of heterosexual sexual activity, premarital sex, same-sex activity, and cohabiting) were unequivocally restrictive. By contrast, across the four groups, young adults on average held rather permissive sexual values and their values differed significantly from those of their parents. Moreover, the nature of perceived parental sexual values (restrictive vs. permissive) was not associated significantly with young adults' sexual values, age of sexual debut, or number of sexual partners. Comparatively, Spanish young adults held the most permissive sexual values, whereas US young adults held the most restrictive sexual values. Religiosity was the strongest predictor of young adults' sexual values, followed by perceived parental sexual values and influence. In conclusion, it appears that despite having perceived restrictive parental messages about sex, these young adults currently hold permissive sexual attitudes, thus calling into question the influence parents actually have on their adult children's sexual values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to analyze the factors determining volunteerism among Spanish young people and children, with a particular emphasis on the influence of voluntary and social activities performed by parents. The database used is the 2002-2003 Time User Survey from the Spanish Statistical Office. We estimated the determinants influencing young people and children to become volunteers as a two-part decision: first, whether to volunteer or not, and second, to decide the amount of time they will spend volunteering. The results show that the most influential variables for all age groups are parents volunteering as examples, and parents' educational level. We consider this a relevant topic for identifying the role of public policies in promoting volunteerism, or organizations' activities for encouraging youth participation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Parent-toddler dyads evaluated old and reformulated (lower sugar, fewer processed ingredients) recipes of yogurt pouches. • All reformulated recipes were highly accepted by toddlers and parents. • Reformulated recipes acceptance was lower in sugar reductions of 28% and 30%, but not 23%. • Reformulation did not influence parent's ingredient list evaluation and purchase intention. • Healthier and more natural yogurt pouches can be formulated without jeopardizing market acceptance. Consumer demand of commercial baby food packaged in squeezable pouches has increased in the last few years. However, pouches have been criticized for having excessive levels of sugar and too many processed ingredients. This study examined how reformulations towards healthier (lower sugar levels) and more natural (fewer processed ingredients) products influenced toddlers' and parents' sensory acceptability. Three pairs of baby yogurt pouches (old versus reformulated recipes) were tested. In the reformulated recipes, fruit concentrates were replaced by fruit purees, and added sugar was eliminated. 150 parent-toddler (1–4 years) dyads were included in a 4-day double-blind randomized cross-over study in Spain. Each parent-toddler dyad tested one of the three yogurt pairs (A-B, C-D, E-F). Toddler's acceptability was measured by the toddler's reaction and by the estimated and relative intake. Parent's overall liking and sensory evaluation was measured on a 7-point hedonic scale. Although the reformulated recipes of two yogurt pairs scored significantly lower on acceptability in toddlers (pair A-B: 3.39 ± 0.49 and 3.12 ± 0.70; pair C-D: 3.54 ± 0.61 and 3.30 ± 0.65, P < 0.05) and their parents (pair A-B: 5.73 ± 0.97 and 5.04 ± 1.43; pair C-D: 5.84 ± 1.27 and 5.04 ± 1.51, P < 0.05), all reformulated recipes were highly accepted. The reformulation of food products represents a huge challenge for food manufacturers. Our findings suggest that a reduction of sugar content up to 30% along with a reduction in the number of processed ingredients is acceptable by toddlers and their parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]