Sugar-sweetened beverage behaviors of Tennessee school children: How do parent- and child-report compare on school days and nonschool days?

INTRODUCTION: This study describes sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) behaviors of children and compares child-reported SSB behaviors to parent-reported SSB behaviors during school days and nonschool days.

METHOD: Six elementary schools from Tennessee participated with 444 students and 287 parents. Descriptive statistics included means, standard deviation (SD), ranges of values, and measures of central tendency. To explore the relationship between parent and child report, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) were analyzed. The mean ( SD) differences and limits of agreement were calculated using paired t tests with Bonferroni corrections for multiple outcomes of interest. A p < 0.05 was significant.

RESULTS: Reporting differed with SSB type of school day. Children reported higher quantities of sweet tea and "coke/soda." Both agreed on SSB abstention, except for juice. ICCs ranged from 0.383 to 0.513 ( p = 0.000). The lowest and highest ICCs were for sweet tea, based on school days or nonschool days.

DISCUSSION: To determine the best estimate of SSBs, information should be obtained from children and parents to improve accuracy and enhance education about health behaviors.