Perfil antropométrico e consumo alimentar dos estudantes de enfermagem e medicina da UFCG-campus Cajazeiras-PB.

Abstract

The family's consumption and eating habits are influenced by cultural issues, technological advances in food production, the industrialization process, advertisements broadcast by the media and, mainly, by socioeconomic conditions. With the inclusion of young people in the university, they are influenced by several factors such as new social networks, stress, psychosocial instability, dietary fads, omission of meals, consumption of fast foods, consumption of alcohol and cigarettes. Understanding the relevance of this theme, since changes in the nutritional profile result from the imbalance between food consumption and energy expenditure, the present study aims to carry out an anthropometric assessment and food consumption of university students of nursing and medicine who belong to the Federal University Campina Grande (UFCG), Campus Cajazeiras-PB. The research has an exploratory / descriptive character with a quantitative approach, being the cross-sectional and documentary study. This is a study with stratified random sampling (n = 113), obtained from a finite population composed of 600 students duly enrolled in the period 2011.1. The instrument used and constituted by a semi-structured questionnaire together with the measurement of weight / height, for the calculation of the Body Mass Index (BMI) and measurement of the Abdominal Circumference. In the distribution by period of the nursing course, it was noted that the beginning periods have a higher frequency of overweight students. A high frequency of grade II obesity was observed in students who are finishing their course. Students belonging to UACV had BMI classified as normal. Nursing students had a higher AC measurement than medical students, except in the 6th period. However, all remain within the normal range. It was observed that there is a predominance of female students in the nursing course, and a prevalence of male students in the medical course. As for the indicators of personal habits, medical students answered yes to most of the elements that favor the development of obesity, this explains the reason why medical students have a slightly elevated BMI in relation to nursing students, but they also showed very good eating habits. worrying. The determinations of the studied sample suggest that there should be a nutritional intervention with an educational-therapeutic character, in the sense of encouraging to obtain a balanced diet and to practice physical exercises in order to prevent the occurrence of metabolic diseases resulting from inadequate food. It is hoped that this research will propose a new look at the students' dietary pattern.