Abstract
Objective: To review scientific production about the relationship between parental mental health and child eating behavior. Methods: This is an integrative review. The search for the articles was carried out in the electronic databases PubMed e Virtual Health Library (VHL) using the words: feeding behavior, child, parents, child of impaired parents e maternal psychopathology. Results: Of the nine articles included in the review, three include maternal depression, three parental anxiety, three assessed psychopathological symptoms in general and one of them parental / maternal stress. In most studies, the presence of depressive and/or anxious symptoms and parental stress, especially from mothers, were associated or were predictors of avoidant eating behaviors in children. Have been found few studies that assess the influence of paternal mental health. Final considerations: The need to adopt a multifactorial approach in the treatment of children's eating behaviors, including the assessment of the parents' mental health. In addition, it is suggested to carry out studies that are dedicated to understanding the relationship between paternal mental health and infant feeding behavior.