Living conditions of young children using extended childcare

<p dir="ltr">An anonymous, self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted among parents of young children using extended childcare at facilities offering extended childcare in Aomori Prefecture. The purpose of the study was explained to the facility manager, and upon obtaining consent, the facility distributed a survey cooperation request form, survey form, and return envelope to the target parents, outlining the purpose of the study and the need to respect privacy. The survey was then individually collected by mail. The survey covered basic demographics, as well as the children's eating habits, lifestyle, and health status. Basic demographics included family structure, family form, parents' employment status, children's age and gender, whether or not they have siblings, use of extended childcare, whether or not meals were provided during extended childcare and the details of such arrangements, and whether or not there were any requests for meal assistance and the details of such arrangements. Children's eating habits included snacks, dinner, and breakfast intake after returning home from extended childcare, and whether or not they had an appetite at dinner and breakfast. Children's lifestyle habits included the time of return home, dinner time, bedtime, and wake-up time on days when extended childcare was used, and the dinner time, bedtime, and wake-up time compared to days when extended childcare was not used. Children's health status included height, weight, bowel frequency, presence or absence of dental caries, mood on days when extended childcare was used, and whether or not they had any health concerns. Children's obesity levels were calculated from their height and weight, and an obesity level of less than -15% was considered underweight, ±15% was considered normal, and +15% or more was considered obese. Responses regarding health concerns were asked to write freely.</p>