Hábitos alimentares e excesso de peso de adolescentes residentes em municípios da área de influência da BR 163 – MT, 2007

Abstract

According to the World Health Organization among the risk factors associated with the development of chronic non-communicable diseases are inadequate diet, physical inactivity, overweight and smoking. Adolescence is the appropriate time for health interventions that should promote the development of a healthy lifestyle. Objective - To analyze the association between dietary habits and the overweight in adolescents living in counties near the BR 163 road. Methods – A population-based cross-sectional study of adolescents aged 10 to 19 years, from families in the urban area of the municipalities of Alta Floresta, Sinop, Sorriso and Diamantino, held in the year 2007. The dependent variable of this study is overweight that was measured by the Body Mass Index. The demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle variables were obtained in specific questionnaires. The verification between overweight and other variables was performed using the Chi-Square Test (Rao-Scott) and Poisson Regression using “svy” commands on Stata 10.0. In all statistical analysis were considered a significance level of α ≤ 0.05. Results – Considering the adolescents studied, the majority (78.4%), was eutrophic. The low body mass index was observed in 8.0%, the overweight in 6.7% and the obesity in 6.9% of the adolescents studied. The lifestyle was characterized by adolescents considered active and who did not consume alcohol nor tobacco. Regarding to eating habits was found that the breakfast, lunch and dinner were performed daily by most adolescents and supper meal was omitted. Gender and soft drink consumption were identified as factors associated with overweight in adolescents. Conclusion – Most of the adolescents were eutrophic, but the prevalence of overweight in this study indicates the need to implement policies aimed at adopting healthy eating habits and physical activity in this age group.