Prevalência de excesso de peso em pré-escolares do município de Itaqui/RS

Abstract

Identify the prevalence of overweight in preschool children's education schools Itaqui / RS. Cross-sectional study, with a population of preschool children, aged 0- 60 months old. Demographic information from the Education Municipal Secretary were obtained and measured weight and height measurements. To assess nutritional status used the Body Mass Index (BMI), according to recommendations of the World Health Organization, considered overweight values above the 97th percentile. Calculations of mean, standard deviation and frequency were performed. The association between the prevalence of overweight and demographic variables were analyzed using chi-square test and a significance level of p <0.05. Were evaluated 653 preschool children, 51.5% were female and the majority aged between 24 and 47 months. Half of the children were normal weight, 28.5% at risk of overweight, and 19% overweight. There was a higher prevalence of overweight among preschool children aged over 24 months compared to 4-24 months, with a statistically significant difference (p = 0.002). There was a high prevalence of overweight in preschool children. Given this fact, we see the need for early nutritional diagnosis and greater investment in public policies for health protection.