Overweight and obese children in the school population of Trujillo (Spain)

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of overweight and obese children and its relation to eatinghabits, level of physical activity, hours of sleep, sedentary leisure and self-esteem.Methodology: Observational, descriptive and transversal study of a population of 581 childrenbetween 6 and 12 years of age. The measured variables are weight, height, alimentation, physicalexercise, sedentary leisure, hours of sleep and self-esteem. Four anonymous questionnaires are used:one concerning adherence to the Mediterranean diet (the Kidmed test), another on physical activityfor schoolchildren (PAQ-C), a third on sedentary leisure and hours of sleep, and finally aquestionnaire on self-esteem (the Rosenberg scale).Results: 34% of the population studied are overweight or obese; 68.75% show an average or lowadherence to the Mediterranean diet; the majority of schoolchildren have a moderate physicalactivity; over half the population under study do not follow the recommendations concerning themaximum time dedicated to sedentary leisure; while 85% of those studied are within therecommended range for sleep hours.Conclusions: No significant relationship was found between the factors studied and the BMI, thoughthere is evidence of a high prevalence in the overweight population.