Which health behaviors are associated with socio-economic status differences in overweight in school children?

It is well known that the prevalence of overweight and obesity is considerably higher among youth from lower socio-economic families, but there is little information about which eating and physical activity behaviors may play a role in explaining these differences in overweight. In a paper just published in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, with Juan Fernandez Alvira as first author, we looked at which behavior mediate the association between parental education and children's body composition. Data were obtained from the cross sectional study of the "EuropeaN Energy balance Research to prevent excessive weight Gain among Youth" (ENERGY) project and we explored the possible mediating effect of sugared drinks intake, breakfast consumption, active transportation to school, sports participation, TV viewing, computer use and sleep duration.
The association between parental education and children's b
ody composition was partially mediated by breakfast consumption, sports participation, TV viewing and computer use.