Factors associated with the nutritional status of schoolchildren: demographic, socioeconomic, dietary and physical activity

Introduction: Currently, the process of nutritional transition is verified. Changes in nutritional status have been occurring in children, mainly due to decreased physical activity, as well as increased consumption of foods and beverages with low nutritional content. Objective: To evaluate demographic, socioeconomic, nutritional and physical activity aspects and their relationship with the nutritional status of students. Materials and Methods: Cross-sectional study with 552 students (7 to 9 years old), enrolled in 16 public schools in the urban area. Demographic and socioeconomic data of the family and information regarding the nutritional status, diet and physical activity of the children were evaluated. The nutritional diagnosis was defined by the Body Mass Index for age and gender. Fisher's chi-square and exact tests were used, as well as logistic regression to evaluate the association between the variables. Results: there was a predominance of adequate weight (58.3%), little physical activity (68.1%), good eating habits (79.7%) and good nutrition knowledge (59.8%). Low weight was associated with children with guardians aged> 40 years (OR = 0.09 95% CI: 0.01-0.65). Conclusion: The investigated population has a high prevalence of overweight. Only the highest age group of the guardian showed influence on the low weight state. Thus, other studies need to be performed so that new variables can be identified in the influence of nutritional deviations.