Consumo e fontes alimentares de açúcar livre na dieta de estudantes universitários

Abstract

There is evidence that excessive consumption of free sugar can compromise the quality of food, negatively impacting health. The low quality of food for young people when they enter higher education is associated with weight gain and early exposure to risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Objective: To evaluate the consumption and associated factors in the diet of university students entering a Public University in Mato Grosso Brazil. Methods: Cross-sectional study, with university students entering a public university in the capital of the state of Mato Grosso, enrolled in 21 full-time courses between the years 2016 to 2018, aged 16 to 25 years. For data collection, semistructured questionnaires, measurement of anthropometric measures and 24-hour Food Record (R24h) were used to assess food consumption. The food groups were ranked according to their contribution to the total consumption of free sugar, with the top 10 being highlighted. The consumption of free sugar was analyzed through the median and interquartile range (IIQ) of energy, proportion of total energy (Kcal) from free sugar and the proportion of students with consumption above 10% of the total energy of free sugar. The association of free sugar consumption with sociodemographics, economics and lifestyle variables was analyzed using hypothesis and central tendency tests for non-parametric variables (Mann Whitney and Kruskal Wallis tests) and Chi-square was used for proportions, being considered a significance level of 5%. Results: 1,063 university students participated in this study, being 50.4% female and 79.1% aged between 16 and 19 years. It was found that the proportion of students with consumption above 10% of the total energy, were significantly higher in females, when compared to males. In both sexes, the free sugar contribution to total diet energy was greater in the largest thirds of total energy consumption. Among women, being enrolled in a course outside the health sciences area, using tobacco and having an unsatisfactory meal consumption profile were associated with greater consumption of free sugar. For males, only the condition of not being overweight was associated with a greater proportion of the total daily energy intake of free sugar. The main groups of food sources of sugar free were: sweets and desserts, sugary drinks and others ultra-processed foods. Conclusions: High participation of free sugar in the diet of university students was observed, being higher among women and between the largest thirds of total energy intake, and the highlight for sugary drinks and ultra-processed foods as their main sources. Consideration should be given to the need to have recommendations aimed at reducing foods rich in free sugar and environmental interventions so that it is possible to change eating habits among university students, thus preventing the risks of developing NCDs.