Assessment of the Relationship Between Nutrition and Obesity in Adolescence

Abstract

Objective: Adolescent obesity is a widely important situation around the world. According to current studies, Turkey is the most obese country in Europe. For the improvement and protection of public health, adolescents should be guided for healthy eating habits. This studyaims todetermine the nutritional status of students in adolescenceand investigate their obesity status. Material and Methods: The research is a descriptive study which has 204 students randomly selected from an Anatolian High School in Amasya. The data were collected through a questionnaire. The survey contains demographic information; eating habits and a food frequency form. Results: According to the results, 59.3% female and 40.7% are male with the average age being 15.88±0.86 years; the average weight 59.9±11.6kg; the average height 168.1±8.63cm; the average BMI 21.1±3.25kg/m2 . In results, the percentiles of the Body Mass Index (BMI) by age and weight for age, females have more normal results (p<0.05). The majority of participants had normal BMI values. The BMI values of the students who have an obese person in their family were higher (p<0.05). 42.6% of the students skipped meals while at home. The results of food frequency survey showed that protein, cholesterol, thiamine, riboflavin, sodium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc were higher in males (p<0.05). Conclusion: Adolescents need nutritional education on healthy eating, meal timing and snacking. It is recommended to provide nutrition education to students and families in institutions and to provide nutritionists for the monitoring of nutrition. It will affect adulthood and the next generations positively.