Parenting Stress, Parental Self-Efficacy, and Coparenting: Prospective Associations with Child Metabolic Health

Abstract

Rising rates of childhood obesity are a serious public health concern, and the family environment plays a central role in shaping early health trajectories. Less is known, however, about how early parenting adjustment and coparenting—both of which help lay the foundation for a nurturing environment—relate to children’s metabolic health. We examined the associations between first-time fathers’ and mothers’ parenting stress and parental self-efficacy during infancy and children’s metabolic health in middle childhood, and tested whether coparenting quality in toddlerhood mediated these associations. Participants were 314 families from the [masked], a randomized controlled trial on the transition to parenthood (identifier: [masked]). Parenting stress and parental self-efficacy were assessed at 10 months, coparenting quality at 24 months, and child metabolic outcomes (glycated hemoglobin [HbA1c], body mass index [BMI], and waist circumference) at ~ 7 years. Greater maternal stress and lower efficacy were associated with lower mother-reported coparenting, which in turn predicted greater child HbA1c and BMI. Although paternal stress and efficacy were associated with father-reported coparenting, no significant pathways to child outcomes emerged for fathers. Findings highlight that maternal perceptions of parenting and coparenting relate to children’s metabolic health and point to the need for continued research on fathers’ roles. Programs and interventions supporting parenting adjustment among first-time parents, especially those that strengthen coparenting, may promote healthier long-term outcomes for children. First-time fathers’ and mothers’ parenting stress and parental self-efficacy in infancy were associated with coparenting quality in toddlerhood. Mother-reported coparenting quality in toddlerhood was associated with child HbA1c (glycated blood glucose) and body mass index (BMI) in middle childhood. Mother-reported coparenting quality in toddlerhood mediated associations between early parenting stress, parental self-efficacy, and child metabolic health in middle childhood.