Analysis of the relationship between physical-healthy habits and diet with obesity in primary school students of the Province of Granada

Abstract

Obesity and overweight have become one of the most important disorders nowadays. The onset of this type of disorder is due to the influence of factors such as unbalanced diet or lack of physical activity, factors that cause an increase in BMI in schoolchildren. This study was conducted on 161 schoolchildren of primary education, aged between 10 and 12 years old and belonging to the province of Granada. The aim is to analyze the relationship between physical activity parameters and diet quality with obesity levels. The results showed that participants were in a normal weight, whereas a low proportion of students presented a low-quality diet, with no significant differences by gender. On the other hand, the analysis of the data showed that males perform greater physical activity and therefore present less sedentary habits than females. In conclusion, the need to encourage students to carry out sports is demonstrated, especially in females. In addition, it is important to raise youth’s awareness on health consequences of sedentary habits and obesity.