Knowledge, attitude and practice of secondary school students regarding obesity in Assiut City, Egypt

ABSTRACT

Adolescent obesity is a major public health problem and has important health, social and economic consequences for the adolescent. The aim of this study was to assess nutritional knowledge, attitude and practice [KAP] of secondary school students regarding obesity, in Assiut City, Egypt [2004]. The study was a cross-sectional one. The study sample was 883 secondary school students at age 14-19 years, randomly chosen from four schools representing different types of education [general and technical] for both boys and girls. Data were collected using two self-administered questionnaires. The first questionnaire included personal data, nutritional KAP and physical activity. The second questionnaire included data about the socioeconomic status. Each student underwent weight and height measurements. Then, they were classified according to body mass index- for age and sex percentiles into non-obese, overweight and obese. It was found that, most of the students [86.3%] had poor knowledge regarding obesity [7.8% achieved zero nutritional knowledge score and 78.5% had low score]. Obesity is no longer a fashion as the majority of students [85.1%] found the obese person not attractive. Moreover, 87.1% of them perceived obesity as a health risk. Many students had poor practices as eating in-between meals [62.6%] and frequent consumption of fast foods [69.1%], snacks [35.4%] and soft drinks [18.8%]. About half of all students [47.8%] were not practicing any physical exercises. The majority of adolescent school students had poor nutritional knowledge, attitude and practice regarding obesity, which requires an appropriate intervention