Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences?
BackgroundRisky health behaviors in childhood, including smoking, alcohol consumption, and having a poor diet, are the major sources of non-communicable diseases in adulthood. This study aimed to examine how parents affect children's risky health behaviors and whether intergenerational transmis...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Medicine |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.842817/full |
| _version_ | 1797957389304987648 |
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| author | Zexuan Yu Zexuan Yu Wen Qin Jiajia Li Jiajia Li |
| author_facet | Zexuan Yu Zexuan Yu Wen Qin Jiajia Li Jiajia Li |
| author_sort | Zexuan Yu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundRisky health behaviors in childhood, including smoking, alcohol consumption, and having a poor diet, are the major sources of non-communicable diseases in adulthood. This study aimed to examine how parents affect children's risky health behaviors and whether intergenerational transmission differs based on socioeconomic status (SES).MethodsData were extracted from the 1991–2015 China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). Smoking (n = 5,946), alcohol consumption (n = 7,821), and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) consumption (n = 3,537) were used as proxies for risky health behaviors in children. A binary choice model for panel data with a random-effect specification was employed to examine whether risky health behaviors can be transmitted from parents to their children. Subsequently, we conducted a seemingly unrelated estimation test (SUEST) to explore the differences in parental transmission between the different SES groups.ResultsWe found strong intergenerational persistence of smoking, alcohol drinking, and SSBs drinking behaviors, except for the mothers' smoking behavior. Mothers had a greater influence on children's alcohol drinking and SSBs drinking behaviors than fathers both in urban and rural areas and in different SES groups. The intergenerational transmission of SSBs drinking behavior exhibited a decreasing trend with increasing SES for both urban and rural families. In urban areas, mothers' alcohol drinking behavior has a decreasing trend with increasing education level, occupation, and income; however, in rural areas, the influence of mothers' alcohol drinking behavior occurred in the same direction with increasing education level and occupation type. In rural areas, the influence of fathers' drinking and smoking behaviors on children appears to mostly increase with increasing SES. Meanwhile, the influence of such behaviors among urban fathers would decrease with increasing SES.ConclusionParents' behaviors and SES can influence the initiation of risky health behaviors in their offspring. Thus, to promote healthy behaviors, policymakers can introduce health education programs for parents, particularly for those living in rural areas and with a low SES. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T00:04:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9d6dda039e20480d91f6aa1a85ccffdd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-858X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T00:04:36Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-9d6dda039e20480d91f6aa1a85ccffdd2023-01-09T13:54:13ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Medicine2296-858X2023-01-01910.3389/fmed.2022.842817842817Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences?Zexuan Yu0Zexuan Yu1Wen Qin2Jiajia Li3Jiajia Li4Center for Health Management and Policy Research, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, ChinaDepartment of Biostatistics, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI, United StatesInfirmary of Shandong University, Jinan, ChinaCenter for Health Management and Policy Research, School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, ChinaNHC Key Lab of Health Economics and Policy Research, Shandong University, Jinan, ChinaBackgroundRisky health behaviors in childhood, including smoking, alcohol consumption, and having a poor diet, are the major sources of non-communicable diseases in adulthood. This study aimed to examine how parents affect children's risky health behaviors and whether intergenerational transmission differs based on socioeconomic status (SES).MethodsData were extracted from the 1991–2015 China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). Smoking (n = 5,946), alcohol consumption (n = 7,821), and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) consumption (n = 3,537) were used as proxies for risky health behaviors in children. A binary choice model for panel data with a random-effect specification was employed to examine whether risky health behaviors can be transmitted from parents to their children. Subsequently, we conducted a seemingly unrelated estimation test (SUEST) to explore the differences in parental transmission between the different SES groups.ResultsWe found strong intergenerational persistence of smoking, alcohol drinking, and SSBs drinking behaviors, except for the mothers' smoking behavior. Mothers had a greater influence on children's alcohol drinking and SSBs drinking behaviors than fathers both in urban and rural areas and in different SES groups. The intergenerational transmission of SSBs drinking behavior exhibited a decreasing trend with increasing SES for both urban and rural families. In urban areas, mothers' alcohol drinking behavior has a decreasing trend with increasing education level, occupation, and income; however, in rural areas, the influence of mothers' alcohol drinking behavior occurred in the same direction with increasing education level and occupation type. In rural areas, the influence of fathers' drinking and smoking behaviors on children appears to mostly increase with increasing SES. Meanwhile, the influence of such behaviors among urban fathers would decrease with increasing SES.ConclusionParents' behaviors and SES can influence the initiation of risky health behaviors in their offspring. Thus, to promote healthy behaviors, policymakers can introduce health education programs for parents, particularly for those living in rural areas and with a low SES.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.842817/fullintergenerational transmissionrisky health behaviorssocioeconomic statussocioeconomic differencesCHNS |
| spellingShingle | Zexuan Yu Zexuan Yu Wen Qin Jiajia Li Jiajia Li Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? Frontiers in Medicine intergenerational transmission risky health behaviors socioeconomic status socioeconomic differences CHNS |
| title | Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? |
| title_full | Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? |
| title_fullStr | Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? |
| title_short | Intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in Chinese children: Are there socioeconomic status differences? |
| title_sort | intergenerational transmission of parental risky health behaviors in chinese children are there socioeconomic status differences |
| topic | intergenerational transmission risky health behaviors socioeconomic status socioeconomic differences CHNS |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.842817/full |
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