Shantanu Sharma¹*, Charu Kohli¹*, and Nandini Sharma²

¹Resident, Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, India
²Director Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, India

*Corresponding Author: Shantanu Sharma, Resident, Maulana Azad Medical College, Delhi, India.

Received: March 13, 2018; Published: April 16, 2018

Citation: Shantanu Sharma., et al. “Food Practices and their Determinants among Pre-Adolescent Age Groups: A Hospital Based Cross Sectional Study”. Acta Scientific Nutritional Health 2.5 (2018).

Abstract

Background: Dietary habits are one of the most important determinants of the nutritional status of a child. The present study was conducted to understand the common dietary habits and fallacies in diet responsible for malnutrition in 5 - 10 years old children.

Methods: It was the cross-sectional study conducted among 5 - 10-year-old children admitted in a tertiary hospital situated in central Delhi. A total of 220 patients were enrolled. Data were collected using semi-structured pre-tested questionnaire.

Results: Mean age (+ SD) of children enrolled in the study was 7.6 ± 1.7 years. Fruits and vegetable consumption was poor among children. The consumption of green vegetables, fruits, pulses, and milk was also poor. Sixty-seven percent children out of 220 had normal height for age and 33.2% were stunted whereas fifty-one percent children had normal weight for age, and 48% were wasted. Fifty-six per cent children had normal Body Mass Index compared 15.5% undernourished. Education of the mother influences nutritional status of the children and children taking green vegetables daily have less prevalence of stunting.

Conclusion: Urgent measures should be taken to promote and inculcate healthy eating habits in children. Family members should be involved in the diet planning for the children. Nutrition education should be an integral part of school curriculum.

Keywords: Diet; Nutritional Status; Malnutrition; Feeding Behaviour

Copyright: © 2018 Shantanu Sharma., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.