A survey on some nutritional behavior of obese people in Jenah, Hormozgan

Introduction: Erroneous nutritional behavior is one of the most important factor
related to malnutrition and nutrients deficiency in human being. Obesity is probably
the most prevalent type of malnutrition among adolescents and adults mainly in
developing countries. Recent studies in our country have demonstrated that
overweight and obesity have high prevalence in urban and rural societies. This
survey was carried out to evaluate some nutritional behavior among obese (BMI≥30)
adolescents (age=10-20) and adults (age=50-60) who referred to Jenah health
center, Hormozgan province.
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study which recruited 82 obese referrers (40 adults
and 42 adolescents) by convenience non-probability sampling as research cases. Data
was gathered by questionnaire of nutritional behavior determination and interview.
Data was analyzed by SPSS statistical software, using descriptive statistics.
Results: Findings showed that approximately 20% of obese adolescents and 10% of
obese adults consume sandwiches and fast foods more than 3 times a week. 44% of
adolescents and 20% of adults drink soft beverages more than 3 times a week. 52%
of adolescents did not eat breakfast at all. 60% of each group received less than 2
servings of dairy products per day. 44% of adolescents and 55% of adults had less
than 3 servings of fruits daily.
Conclusion: The results indicate that obese participants in this study have multiple
unhealthy nutritional behaviors. Attempts for educating people about importance of
healthy diet and improvement of government strategies for availability of healthy
foodstuff can ameliorate nutrition status of society.