Nutritional transition in schoolchildren of the forest and agreste zones of Pernambuco according to anthropometric indicators of nutritional status

DOI: 10.15343/0104-7809.20174103306314

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the indicators of growth in children of Forest and Agreste Zones of Pernambuco, and to determine the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and malnutrition. A cross-sectional study was carried out involving 1,165 children in the school system, between the years 2010 and 2011 (5 to 10 years old) in the cities of Caruaru and Vitória de Santo Antão. The body mass and height were used to determine body mass index (BMI). The Z score and the respective distances were used for sample stratification. The Graph Error Bar was used to identify the average distances and the confidence interval (95% CI) according to age and gender. Between girls, in all ages, the occurrence of malnutrition and low weight were observed, but overweight and obesity were not identified. In boys, conditions of malnutrition and low weight were not found. On the other hand, the occurrence of overweight and obesity were verified. The profiles observed of the children of studied cities showed that the subjects are within the WHO’s normal range. However, there are typical cases of nutritional transition, namely subjects with malnutrition and obesity within the same population.