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Glenn Flores, MD1, Sandra C. Tomany, MS1, and Lynn Olson, PhD2. (1) Center for the Advancement of Urban Children, Medical College of Wisconsin/Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, AB 53226, 414-456-4193, stomany@mail.mcw.edu, (2) American Academy of Pediatrics, Department of Practice and Research, 141 Northwest Point Blvd, Elk Grove Village, IN 60007
Background: Little is known about whether racial/ethnic differences exist in household family activities, safety, and educational opportunities known to impact young children’s healthy development and school success. Objective: To examine whether racial/ethnic disparities exist in early childhood home routines, safety, and educational practices/resources. Design/Methods: The 2000 National Survey of Early Childhood Health is a telephone survey of a national random sample of responsible parents/guardians of 2,608 children aged 4 to 35 months. Differences in selected shared family activities, safety practices, and educational practices and resources were examined for non-Latino white (W), non-Latino African-American (AA), and Latino (L) children (sample sizes were inadequate to analyze other racial/ethnic groups). STATA was used for statistical analyses, national estimates, and to obtain odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) by multivariate analyses adjusting for insurance coverage, health status, family income, age, parental education, and language of interview. Results: Minority children are less likely than white children to have consistent daily meal and bed times, and more frequently never eat lunch or dinner with their family (AAs, 26%; Ls, 26%; Ws, 10%). Minority parents more often want to spend more time with their child, and are less likely to install stair gates or cabinet safety locks and turn down hot water settings. Minority parents less often read daily to their child (Ls, 29%; AAs, 46%; Ws, 61%), Latino parents more often never read to their child, and minority households average fewer children’s books (Ls, 33; AAs, 41; Ws, 83; P <.001). AA children average more hours watching television daily. Disparities persisting in multivariate analyses included: minority children having increased odds of never eating lunch or dinner together with their family; AA children not having regular meal times (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.2-2.9) and watching 1 more hour of TV daily; black parents wanting to spend more time with their children and not installing cabinet locks; minority parents having twice the odds of not installing stair gates and not reading to their child daily; and minority homes having fewer children’s books (AAs: -31; Ls, -23). Children whose parents completed surveys in Spanish also experienced several disparities. Conclusions: Young minority children experience multiple disparities in home routines, safety, and educational practices/resources that have the potential to impede their healthy development and future school success. Such disparities might be reduced or eliminated through targeted education and intervention by pediatric providers.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Ethnic Minorities, Children and Adolescents
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Handout (.ppt format, 287.5 kb)