Abstract
The development of educational strategies to generate positive changes in eating habits of students at the primary school level has gained special interest in the last years. Education in terms of good nutrition is a key factor in student´s healthy lifestyle. In order to know the eating habits of students, it becomes necessary to assess the nutritional status of students taking into account the different foods that themselves choose to eat. One place where they eat food that they themselves choose is at school during the recess, where they have access to buy different kind of food products. In this work, eating habits of students in their last year of primary school were evaluated by the use of a survey. To facilitate the survey understood, household measures were used. Nevertheless, the results were expressed by using the international system of units (SI). Data obtained shows that the most consumed product in the recess chosen by students is alfajor (45.7%), followed by sandwich and/or hot dog (35.1%). Meanwhile, the products that were less consumed were gelatin (3.5%) and cereal bars (3.5%). The total amount of intake macronutrients was also calculated from the survey completed by each of them and it was expressed as total caloric value, carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Although, the average total intake resulted in 1550 Cal/day, which is lower than the Recommended Daily Intake for children (2000 Cal/day), according with Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) the intake adequacies of the average macronutrient distribution were higher than 70% in all cases.
Highlights
The industrialization, urbanization, economic development and market globalization have led to lifestyle changes of the worldwide population
In this study a survey and a questionnaire were used to known the weekly food consumption and the kind of food that students selects during the school recess
The average total intake of nutrients of the studied population resulted lower (1550 Cal/day) than the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) for children (2000 Cal/day), the average macronutrient distribution were in the reference intake range being the intake adequacy higher than 70% for all macronutrients
Summary
The industrialization, urbanization, economic development and market globalization have led to lifestyle changes of the worldwide population. The nutritional habits have been changing during the last decades, characterized by an increase of fat intake, mostly in saturated fat, along with a decrease in cereals, fruits, legumes and vegetables consumption [1,2]. These changes in the world food economy are reflected in the change in eating habits, for example, increased energy consumption in diets that are currently high in fat, saturated fat, and low in carbohydrates [3]. Nutritional habits are established in early life and can have a significantly effect on the health of individuals in the long-term [2]
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