Body composition, eating habits and physical activity in university students.Lima-Perú

Cárdenas Quintana H.; Gutiérrez Asencios S.S.; Delgado López V.; Ramos Padilla P. · Nutricion Clinica y Dietetica Hospitalaria (2024) · DOI: 10.12873/442ramos

Resumen

Introduction: In the current epidemiological and nutritional context, knowledge about the eating habits, lifestyles, and nutritional conditions of young university students is urgently needed.Objective: To identify body composition, eating habits, and physical activity in university students.Materials and Methods: Observational-cross-sectional study.The population consisted of university students between 16 and 25 years of age (n = 118).The variables studied were: age, sex, weight, height, BMI, body fat mass, skeletal muscle mass, visceral fat, waist circumference, dietary habits, and physical activity.Body composition was measured by anthropometry and bioelectrical impedance.Food consumption was obtained with the Block Screening Questionnaire.The short International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to assess physical activity.Chi-Square and T-Student tests were used as hypothesis contrasts.To determine associations between variables, a p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: Skeletal muscle mass was higher in males (38%) than in females (25%), while body fat was higher in females (37%) than in males (24%).These differences were statistically significant.Regarding dietary habits, 19% had a diet high and very high in fat, and less than 1% had normal consumption of fruits, vegetables, and fiber.Regarding physical activity, 46% indicated high physical activity, 52% moderate, and 2.5% low activity.It was observed that men had more high physical activity than women; however, women had more moderate and low physical activity than men (p = 0.0299).No statistically significant differences were found for the study variables according to age ranges.Conclusions: Body composition was variable and sex-dependent.A minimum percentage of university students had adequate intakes of fruits, vegetables, and fiber.Men had a higher level of physical activity than women.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina