A Boston University School of Medicine study reported that kids with strict disciplinarian parents are likely to wind up fat by age 6, possibly as a reaction to stress.
The study covered 872 children who were part of a group enrolled at birth in 1991 in a U.S. Government study and followed for a number of years.
"Among the four parenting styles, authoritarian parenting was associated with the highest risk of overweight among young children," concluded the study published in the June issue of Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
"These results provide evidence that a strict environment lacking in emotional responsiveness is associated with an increased risk of childhood overweight," the study said.