The Relationship Between Nutritional Status and Self-Perception of Nutrition in Adolescents

S. V. Bairova; A. D. Balaganskaya; L. V. Sakhno; I. V. Koltuntseva; M. O. Revnova; I. M. Gaiduk; A. I. Khavkin; D. A. Shelkovnikova

doi:10.31146/1682-8658-ecg-245-1-62-68

The Relationship Between Nutritional Status and Self-Perception of Nutrition in Adolescents

S. V. Bairova, A. D. Balaganskaya, L. V. Sakhno, I. V. Koltuntseva, M. O. Revnova, I. M. Gaiduk, A. I. Khavkin, D. A. Shelkovnikova

https://doi.org/10.31146/1682-8658-ecg-245-1-62-68

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Abstract

Introduction. The problem of nutritional status imbalance in adolescents, from obesity to nutritional deficiency, remains highly relevant in pediatrics. Adolescence is recognized as a critical stage for the formation of eating behavior and physical health. Distorted self-assessment of body weight is associated with unhealthy behavioral patterns and disorders of the psychological state of adolescents. The purpose of the study. to study objective indicators of the nutritional status of adolescents aged 15-17 in St. Petersburg and compare them with their parents’ self-assessment and opinion. Materials and methods. An assessment of the nutritional status and a survey of 174 adolescents (122 girls and 52 boys) aged 15-17 years, students in grades 9-11, three secondary educational schools in St. Petersburg and a survey of 32 parents of children participating in the survey were conducted. The author’s questionnaire for students consisted of 32 questions, and for parents of 20 questions, Nutritional status was assessed using the WHO AnthroPlus automatic program. Results. Among the 174 adolescents examined, 125 (71.8%) had satisfactory nutritional status, 41 (23.5%) had borderline values: 17 (9.7%) had excess body weight, and 24 (14%) had nutritional deficiency. Significant nutritional status disorders were observed in 8 people (4.6%), 6 (3.4%) were malnourished and 2 (1.1%) were obese. Boys had a generally higher percentage of nutritional disorders -30.8% (16 people) than girls -28.3% (35 people). When assessing self-perception of their nutritional status, it was revealed that the majority of adolescents (82.2% (100) girls and 71.2% (37) boys) rate their weight as normal. The assessment of weight as overweight is most common in girls -14% (17), and boys perceive their weight as deficient more often - 21.2% (11). In a survey of adolescent parents, 80% (26) objectively assess their children’s body weight (the majority of them were children with normal nutritional status), which indicates a higher level of perception compared to the adolescent sample. However, 20% (6) gave a biased assessment of children, both in the direction of increasing and decreasing the nutritional status of their children in children with a harmonious nutritional status. Conclusions. The study showed a fairly high percentage of eating disorders in adolescents, which is more common in boys in the direction of weight deficiency, and in a smaller percentage in girls, but in the direction of overweight. The violation of the objectivity of perception of their nutritional status is more pronounced in girls, in the direction of assessing normal, and sometimes deficient weight as excessive. Boys underestimate their overweight and underestimate their perception of normal weight. This trend is probably explained by the stereotypes of modern youth regarding body structure: boys should be big, and girls thin. An unbiased assessment of a child’s physical condition can have an indirect effect on the formation of eating habits and on a teenager’s self-esteem. The development of educational programs to objectify the perception of one’s nutritional status, taking into account the family factor, will prevent the development of psychological and somatic disorders both in adolescence and older age.