Assessment of the nutritional habits of junior high school students from the Kłomnice district in relation to obesity

• Published in: Medical Science Pulse Vol. 11; no. 3; pp. 32 - 39
• Main Authors: Malczyk, Ewa, Zołoteńka-Synowiec, Marzena, Całyniuk, Beata, Misiarz, Marta, Rybak, Joanna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Opole Medical School 2017; Państwowa Medyczna Wyższa Szkoła Zawodowa w Opolu
• Subjects: Family and social welfare; Health and medicine and law; eating habits; high school students; obesity
• ISSN: 2544-1558

Background: Puberty is a time when many changes occur in the body of a young person. It is also the time when nutritional habits are developed or modified. Healthy dietary choices are of particular importance for normal development during adolescence and are also predictive of future health. Aim of the study: The aim of this study was to assess the nutritional habits of junior high school students from the Kłomnice district with a focus on obesity. Material and methods: The study was carried out using 280 randomly selected secondary school students attending schools in Kłomnice, Częstochowa in the Silesian province. The research was carried out using a questionnaire comprising questions about gender, age, weight and height of the body and nutritional habits. Results: The nutritional habits of high school students from the Kłomnice district were evaluated to be low. Girls more frequently than boys had developed improper eating habits. Irregularities in the diet of the surveyed high school children are: incorrect number of meals a day, irregular food consumption, snacking between meals, adding too much sugar to hot beverages, infrequent consumption of milk and dairy products, coarse grains, vegetables, fruits and legumes and a high frequency of meat and sweets consumption. The nutritional habits of junior high school students from Kłomnice were at a sufficient level. Girls more often than the boys showed improper eating habits. Irregularities in the diet of the students in the study were: improper amount of food consumed during the day, irregular food consumption, snacking between meals, adding too much sugar to hot beverages, infrequent consumption of milk and dairy products, coarse grains, fish, vegetables, fruits and legumes and a high frequency of meat and sweets consumption. Conclusions: It is recommended that continuous nutritional education of children and adolescents is implemented in order to improve diet and thereby reduce the risk of obesity in the future.