Maternal Knowledge, Attitude and Practices toward Free Sugar and the Associations with Free Sugar Intake in Children

Abstract

Research addressing factors related to free sugar (FS) consumption among children in Saudi Arabia is lacking. We aimed to evaluate maternal knowledge, attitude, and practices toward FS and the associations with children’s intake of FS. This cross-sectional study included 424 Saudi children aged 6–12 years and their mothers. Data related to maternal knowledge, attitude, and practices were collected using an online survey. Data concerning children’s habitual intake of FS were collected through phone interviews using a validated food frequency questionnaire. Limited knowledge on FS was observed among mothers of children [median 7.00 [interquartile range 6.00–8.00] out of 11.0. Maternal knowledge was not correlated with maternal attitude or practices toward FS. Maternal knowledge towards FS did not predict children’s intake of FS, whereas maternal attitude and practices toward limiting the consumption of FS predicted lower intake of FS among Saudi children, particularly the FS consumed from solid food sources (B: −5.73 [95% confidence interval (CI): −9.79 to −1.66]) and (B: −6.85 [95% CI: −11.9 to −1.80]), respectively. Despite the limited knowledge pertaining to FS among mothers in Saudi Arabia, they were making efforts to limit their children’s consumption of FS.