COMPARISON OF EATING BEHAVIOUR AMONG CHILDREN AGED 2 - 11 YEARS IN MALAYSIA DURING THE FIRST TWO PHASES OF MOVEMENT CONTROL ORDER

Received 2021-11-13; Accepted 2022-03-21; Published 2022-11-23

Authors

  • Tan Seok Tyug Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Management and Science University, University Drive, off Persiaran Olahraga, Seksyen 13, 40100 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.
  • Sabrina Premila Joseph Louis Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Management and Science University, University Drive, off Persiaran Olahraga, Seksyen 13, 40100 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.
  • Sharmilla Rengarajoo Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Management and Science University, University Drive, off Persiaran Olahraga, Seksyen 13, 40100 Shah Alam, Selangor, Malaysia.

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22452/jummec.vol25no2.15

Keywords:

Eating behaviour, children, COVID-19, lockdown

Abstract

Background: To date, the Malaysian government has implemented three nationwide lockdowns (Movement Control Order, MCO) to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 transmission. It is predicted that children’s eating behaviour could be different due to the sudden change in daily routine and school closure during the pandemic. Therefore, this study aims to compare the children’s eating behaviour during the implementation of MCO 1.0 and MCO 2.0.

Methods: Children’s eating behaviour during the lockdowns was assessed with a 35-item validated Children’s Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ).

Results: Children in Malaysia attained significantly higher mean scores (p<0.05) in food responsiveness, enjoyment of food, and desire to drink subscales in MCO 2.0 than that of MCO 1.0. Conversely, significantly lower mean scores (p<0.05) were observed in satiety responsiveness and slowness in eating subscales during the MCO 2.0 compared to MCO 1.0.

Conclusion: Children residing in Malaysia had higher food responsiveness, food enjoyment, desire to drink, and eating speed during the MCO 2.0 than MCO 1.0. The findings of this study may be useful for the policymakers in formulating healthy eating intervention strategies in the post-COVID-19 era.

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Published

2022-11-23

Issue

Vol. 25 No. 2 (2022)

Section

Research article

License

All authors agree that the article, if editorially accepted for publication, shall be licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 to allow others to freely access, copy and use research provided the author is correctly attributed, unless otherwise stated. All articles are available online without charge or other barriers to access. However, anyone wishing to reproduce large quantities of an article (250+) should inform the publisher. Any opinion expressed in the articles are those of the authors and do not reflect that of the University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.