Abstract
To obtain information about parental attitude towards healthy weight screening/counselling during dental visits of their children.
The study was conducted at the King Saud University College of Dentistry Interns Clinic at Darraiyah University Campus, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from October to December 2013, and comprised a sample of 6-to-11-year-old children and their parents. A questionnaire was used to record height/weight data, history of body weight counselling and parental opinion regarding healthy weight screening and counselling. SPSS 17 was used for data analysis.
Of the 61 children, 35(57.4%) were boys and 26(42.6%) were girls. The overall mean age was 7.9±1.7 years (range: 6-11 years). Besides, 40(65.6%) children were accompanied by their fathers and 21(34.4%) by their mothers. Overall 13(21.3%) children were overweight and 7(11.5%) obese. Moreover, 54(88.5%) parents found the healthy weight screening and counselling for their children valuable, whereas 46(75.4%) endorsed the screening/counselling during the dental visit of their children.
Most parents found healthy weight screening and counselling to be valuable, and endorsed its administration during dental visits for their children.