Maternal Feeding Practices, Health Cognitions, and Children's Eating Styles and Weight Status.

Objective: To examine the relationship between maternal cognitions related to promoting a healthy lifestyle in their child, maternal feeding practices, children's eating styles, and child weight status in children aged 4 to 6 years.

Methods: Cross-sectional questionnaire data were collected in 251 Dutch mothers of preschoolers. Structural equation modeling was used to test the fit of a model that assumed maternal health cognitions would predict maternal feeding practices, which in turn would predict children's eating styles and child weight status.