engleski

Who is thicker-nutritional status of children in Continental versus children in Mediterranean Croatia

To present the state of nutrition in two different areas of the Republic of Croatia, which apart from geographic location, also differ in dietary habits. High-calorie food prevails in Continental, while low-calorie food prevails in Mediterranean Croatia. According to some research higher influence on the appearance of obesity has the state of metabolic activity than eating habits. The hypothesis of this longitudinal research was that the children in the age of 11 and 14 years from the Continental would be thicker than the children of the same age group from Mediterranean Croatia. Methods: The study was conducted on 1011 children. 648 children were from Osijek (Continental Croatia) and 363 were from Zadar (Mediterranean Croatia). Data from medical charts were used in the research after the systematic examination of students when they were 11 and 14 years old. For the assessment, the Croatian reference values of body mass, height and body mass index (BMI) for girls and boys aged 6.5 to 18.5 were used. Results: At the age of 11, respondents from Continental Croatia were underweight and normal in body weight, while students from Mediterranean Croatia were overweight and obese. At the age of 14, the same respondents from Zadar were heavier and with higher BMI (p<0, 001). Respondents at the same age from Osijek were usually underweight or normal body weight. There was a significant increase in the number of underweight and obese at the age of 11 compared to the same respondents at the age of 14, while the number of subjects with normal body weight and overweight decreased. In Osijek there was a bigger increase in underweight and decrease of overweight at the age of 14 compared to respondents at the age of 11 (p<0, 001). In Zadar there was an increase in overweight and obese at the age of 14 compared to respondents at the age of 11 (p=0, 01). Conclusion: The research has shown that the hypothesis of the greater body mass of children in Continental compared to children in Mediterranean Croatia is incorrect and that there are certainly other factors that contribute significantly to the development of children in both regions.

nutritional status, childhood obesity, BMI, physical activity, Mediterranean diet

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