Determinación del estado nutricional en los niños de 6 a 12 años de la escuela Arzobispo Serrano, de la ciudad de Cuenca, Noviembre 2014 - Enero 2015

Abstract

The assessment of nutritional status is a good index for early capture situations of malnutrition, which is very common in school. Through, a descriptive cross-sectional study, the nutritional status of 221 students of the school “Archbishop Serrano” in Cuenca city, were assessed using the anthropometric indicators, BMI for age of the WHO and a questionnaire of food frequency aimed to the students’ mothers. The results have demonstrated that 42.0% of the studied population had a normal nutritional status, 38.5% were malnourished and 19.5% were overweight. In addition, we observed that the overweight state would be more likely with a low consumption of fruits, meats and the high level of intake over processed foods. On the other hand, the low weight is less likely with a low consumption of one to three dairy portion of fruits, meats and processed foods. These results corroborate the need to implement consistent actions of primary care to promote healthy lifestyles, in order to consider the whole environment of students at the school, which will allow greater welfare for the individual, the family and the state.