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Attitudes and Opinions of Parents towards Water-Only Drink Policy at Junior Triathlon Events
Devlin, Brooke Lea Staley, Kiera J. Trakman, Gina Forsyth, Adrienne Nicholson, Matthew Cosgriff, Grant Chisholm, Melanie Belski, Regina
Devlin, Brooke Lea
Staley, Kiera J.
Trakman, Gina
Forsyth, Adrienne
Nicholson, Matthew
Cosgriff, Grant
Chisholm, Melanie
Belski, Regina
Abstract
Rates of childhood obesity within Australia continue to rise, with consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages one contributing factor. Community sport provides an opportunity to implement policies promoting water as the beverage of choice. However, the attitudes of parents toward a water-only policy are not known. This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate parents’ opinions towards beverage consumption and a water-only policy. Data were collected from participants (n = 159) using an investigator-designed questionnaire, administered using iPads, at a junior Triathlon Victoria event. Water was the most popular beverage provided before (75%), during (85%) and after (61%) sport. Parents were more likely to provide sports drinks to children older than 14 years (27%). Three-quarters (77%) of parents reported having received no information regarding hydration requirements. Parents rated the importance of hydration prior to, during and after a triathlon as high (9.08 ± 1.2, 8.76 ± 1.3 and 9.30 ± 0.4 out of 10, respectively). Parents were supportive of a water-only policy at all junior triathlon events and all junior sporting events (7.94 ± 1.3 and 7.86 ± 1.9, respectively). There was less support for a water-only policy for adult triathlons (6.40 ± 3.1). A water-only drink policy at junior sport is viewed positively by parents. This warrants further research and policy development to facilitate behaviour change.
Keywords
sugar-sweetened beverages, hydration, adolescents, junior athletes
Date
2022
Type
Journal article
Journal
Book
Volume
19
Issue
14
Page Range
8529-8529
Article Number
ACU Department
Centre for Exercise and Nutrition
Faculty of Health Sciences
School of Behavioural and Health Sciences
Faculty of Health Sciences
School of Behavioural and Health Sciences
Relation URI
Source URL
Event URL
Open Access Status
Published as ‘gold’ (paid) open access
License
CC BY 4.0
File Access
Open
Notes
© 2022 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).