Consumption of ultraprocessed food in healthcare professionals during COVID-19

ABSTRACT

The exacerbated consumption of ultraprocessed foods is associated with an increase in obesity rates, favoring the prevalence of chronic non-communicable diseases. In this sense, the objective of the study was to investigate the prevalence of consumption of ultra-processed foods among professionals working in Primary Care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Montes Claros, Minas Gerais. This is a descriptive study, with health professionals working in primary care in Montes Claros. Data collection occurred through a questionnaire addressing the consumption of ultra-processed foods, in addition to the sociodemographic variables, behavioral habits and anthropometric profile, available on google forms from September to October 2020. Descriptive analysis was used to estimate the prevalence of the outcome variable and association verified by bivariate analysis considering p <0.05. 210 health professionals were interviewed, most of them were female (75.7%), were partners (71.4%), were non-white (57.6%), had residency in the health area (50, 5%), worked for more than 5 years (95.7%) and had another type of contractual modality (61.4%). The prevalence of consumption of ultra-processed foods in this period was considered high (41%). The prevalence of consumption of ultra-processed foods points to the need for health promotion actions for professionals.