Evaluation of the Consumption of Junk Food Products and Lifestyle among Teenagers and Young Population from Romania

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The long-term consumption of junk food products can lead to nutritional and metabolic imbalances, especially when it is associated with a lack of physical activity and the consumption of alcohol or other high-calorie products. METHODS: The evaluation of junk food consumption among teenagers and young people in Romania was carried out with the help of a cross-sectional study based on a questionnaire. RESULTS: A total number of 1017 respondents participated in this study, comprising 470 males and 547 females aged between 16 and 25 years. Although the majority of young people fell into the normal-weight category (607 of them, p < 0.0001), some aspects can be noted that in the long term can produce a series of nutritional imbalances: an increased tendency toward sedentarism, with 553 (p = 0.613) of the respondents declaring that they performed sports rarely or not at all, and a tendency toward relatively high consumption of foods high in calories (fast food products and especially fried potatoes, hamburgers, shawarma, pastries, and snacks, along with sweetened drinks and even alcoholic beverages). The respondents participating in this study even indicated a perceived addiction to the consumption of certain products: coffee (50.48%), fried potatoes (38.9%), hamburgers (37.05%), shawarma (31.65%), and snacks (30.08%). Many of these products are rich in calories, saturated fat, and even trans fat. CONCLUSIONS: This study highlights a series of aspects that can have long-term negative effects related to the excess weight associated with other imbalances: consumption preferences among young people for hypercaloric fast food products, sweetened drinks associated with reduced physical activity, and even the development of some forms of food addictions for a series of hypercaloric foods.