Evaluation of the energy and nutrient content of children's menus and family attitudes towards the menus

This study was planned and contucted to evaluate the energy and nutrient contents of the children's menus offered by the food businesses and to determine the family attitudes towards these menus. The study data were obtained from 90 families with at least 1 child aged 3-12 years and 131 children aged 3-12 years who applied to a special nutrition counseling center in Ankara Çankaya between February and May 2021. A face-to-face or online questionnaire was applied to the parents participating in the study. Anthropometric measurements of parents and children were taken by the researcher in face-to-face interviews and by the participant in online interviews. In the study, the Nutrition Self-efficacy Scale and the Nutrition Behavior Scale were applied to the children to evaluate their nutritional behaviors and food choices. The questionnaire, which was taken from another study by the researcher with the permission of the author and adapted to the study, was used to determine the attitudes of the parents towards the children's menus offered by the food businesses. The energy and nutritional elements of the children's menus in the restaurants preferred by the participants were calculated using BEBIS program. These data were compared with the daily consumption recommendations according to the age group of the children. It was found that the average age of the parents participating in the study was between 30-45 years old the most. The mean age of the children participating in the study was found to be 8.19 ± 2.96 years. The mean nutritional self-efficacy scores of the children were found to be 0.7± 6.45, and it was determined that the children's self-efficacy scores decreased as the education level of the fathers decreased (p<0.05). It was determined that the nutritional self-efficacy scores of the children of low-income families were low, but no statistically significant difference was found (p>0.05). It was determined that the children's nutritional behavior mean scores did not statistically different according to the age groups, occupations and BMI groups of the parents (p>0.05). It was determined that only the nutritional behavior scores of the children differed according to the education level of the mothers (p<0.05). The nutritional behavior scores of the children of mothers with undergraduate and graduate education were found to be higher than the nutritional behavior scores of the children of mothers with other education levels, and it was determined that the nutritional behavior scores of the children were statistically different according to the mother's education level. (p<0.05). It has been determined that 63.3% of parents interfere with their children to choose healthier food and drink in eating out. In the study, the parents' first preference among the eating out criteria was health and hygiene with 30.6%, their second preference was low-fat foods with 17.8%, and their third preference was menus without unhealthy drinks with 12%. As a result of the analysis of the energy and nutrient content of the children's menus offered by the food and beverage businesses, it was determined that the menus generally meet the minimum 50% and more of the daily energy needs of the children and more than the half of the carbohydrate and fat needs. While the menus meet the daily needs of children for iron and vitamin B12, these menus are insufficient in terms of vitamin C and calcium. In conclusion, this study revealed that parents have an impact on children's nutritional behavior and nutritional self-efficacy, and that parents first consider their children's health and body weight control in their attitudes towards eating out and menus. For this reason, there is a need for education on nutrition in order for parents to be more conscious about healthy nutrition, to be the right role model for their children, and to make healthier choices in nutrition choices outside the home.In addition, it is thought that food and beverage businesses should make adaptations and increase diversity especially in children's menus for the protection of health.