There is a correlation between nutritional status, Self-Rated Health and Life Satisfaction? Evidence from 2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children cross sectional study in a sample of Italian adolescents living in Tuscany Region.

Background: Overweight has been associated with several social and phycological problems and is perceived as one of the major health care challenges to focus on in the future. The purpose of the study is to investigate the correlations among nutritional status, assessed by the Body Mass Index, the perception of one's own health status and Life Satisfaction, detected in Italian adolescents living in Tuscany Region, and to investigate the influence of gender on them. Methods: A statistically representative sample of 2760 Tuscan adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15 was involved in the 2018 Health Behaviours at School-aged Children survey. The participants were divided into three nutritional status class: underweight, normal weight and overweight (overweight + obese). Results: The results show that there is a statistically significant difference in all categories between boys and girls aged 13 and 15 years; in girls aged 11 and 13 years, the Life Satisfaction of the overweight group is statistically lower than that of normal and underweight groups; Self-Rated Health is statistically lower in all age groups for overweight individuals compared to normal weight children, except for 11-year-old females. Conclusions: Viewing the psychosocial problems related to overweight, more attention and care must be placed on adolescents to ensure their healthier development.

[Trends of overweight and obesity prevalence among schoolchildren in Tuscany Region (Central Italy), period 2002-2016]. / Trend della prevalenza di sovrappeso e obesità nei bambini toscani in età scolare dal 2002 al 2016.

OBJECTIVES: to examine the prevalence and time trends in childhood overweight (including obesity) and obesity among children dwelling in Tuscany Region (Central Italy) in the period 2002-2016. DESIGN: cross-sectional study at seven points (Tuscan Nutritional Surveillance System conducted in the years 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016); height and weight of the subjects are directly measured by trained staff; body mass index was assessed by means of the International Obesity Task Force and of the World Health Organization cut-offs. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: representative sample of children dwelling in Tuscany Region (No. 10,155) aged between 8 and 9 years (5,258 boys and 4,897 girls). RESULTS: regarding the estimation of the absolute prevalence level of childhood overweight, a discrepancy was observed between the two criteria. In all surveys, more boys than girls were overweight (or obese). Trend analysis showed a significant decrease in the prevalence of overweight (including obesity) and obesity in Tuscan children in the period 2002-2016 (32.0% vs. 28.1%; p <0.001) and of 10.0% vs. 5.9% (p <0.001) for obesity. CONCLUSIONS: the present study is the first report from an Italian region showing a significant decrease in childhood obesity and overweight in the last 14 years. This reduction is probably a result of regional and local actions that were performed in many areas of society. However, efforts should be made to further reduce prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight.

Trends in overweight and obesity prevalence in Tuscan schoolchildren (2002-2012).

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to examine the prevalence and time trends in childhood overweight including obesity and obesity among Tuscan children from 2002 to 2012. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study at five time points (Tuscan Nutritional Surveillance Surveys conducted in the years of 2002, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2012). Trained personnel directly measured the height and weight of the subjects. BMI was assessed by means of the International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) and WHO cut-offs. SETTING: Representative sample of children in the Tuscany region (Italy). SUBJECTS: Children (n 7183) aged between 7·5 and 9·5 years (3711 boys and 3472 girls). RESULTS: With respect to the estimation of the absolute prevalence level of childhood overweight, a discrepancy was observed between the two criteria. In all surveys, more boys than girls were overweight (including obesity). Trend analysis showed a significant decrease in the prevalence of overweight including obesity and obesity in Tuscan children from 2002 to 2012 (32·0 % v. 25·8 %, P<0·001 on using IOTF criteria and 37·7 % v. 34·3 %, P<0·001 on using WHO criteria for overweight including obesity; and 10·0 % v. 6·7 %, P<0·001 on using IOTF criteria and 12·5 % v. 11·3 %, P=0·035 on using WHO criteria for obesity). CONCLUSIONS: The present study is the first report from an Italian region showing a significant decrease in childhood obesity and overweight in the last 10 years. This reduction is probably a result of regional and local actions that have taken place in many sectors of society. However, efforts should be made to lower the prevalence of childhood obesity and overweight further.

Factors associated with unhealthy behaviours and health outcomes: a cross-sectional study among Tuscan adolescents (Italy).

BACKGROUND: We aimed to determine the extent to which three core variables (school environment, peer group and family affluence) were associated with unhealthy behaviours and health outcomes among Tuscan adolescents. The unhealthy behaviours considered were smoking, alcohol consumption, sedentary lifestyle and irregular breakfast consumption; health outcomes were classified as self-reported health, multiple health complaints and life satisfaction. School environment was measured in terms of liking school, school pressure, academic achievement and classmate support; peer groups were evaluated in terms of the number of peers and frequency of peer contact. Family affluence was measured on a socioeconomic scale. METHODS: Data were taken from the Tuscan 2009/10 survey of "Health Behaviour in School-aged Children", a WHO cross-national survey. A binary logistic multiple regression (95% confidence intervals) was implemented. RESULTS: The total sample comprised 3291 school students: 1135 11-year-olds, 1255 13-year-olds and 901 15-year-olds. Peer group and school environment were associated with unhealthy behaviours such as smoking, alcohol consumption and sedentary lifestyle. Family affluence proved to have less impact on unhealthy behaviours, except in the case of adolescents living in low-income families. Poor health outcomes were directly related to a negative school environment. Regarding the influence of family affluence, the results showed higher odds of life dissatisfaction and poor self-reported health status in medium-income families, while low-income families had higher odds only with regard to life dissatisfaction. A consistent pattern of gender differences was found in terms of both unhealthy behaviours and health outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Unhealthy behaviours are strongly related to the school environment and peer group. A negative school environment proved to have the strongest relation with poor health outcomes.

Association between fruits and vegetables intake and frequency of breakfast and snacks consumption: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: There are very few studies on the frequency of breakfast and snack consumption and its relation to fruit and vegetable intake. This study aims to fill that gap by exploring the relation between irregular breakfast habits and snack consumption and fruit and vegetable intake in Tuscan adolescents. Separate analyses were conducted with an emphasis on the potentially modifying factors of sex and age. METHODS: Data was obtained from the 2010 Tuscan sample of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study. The HBSC study is a cross-sectional survey of 11-, 13- and 15-year-old students (n = 3291), selected from a random sample of schools. Multivariate logistic regression was used for analyzing the food-frequency questionnaire. RESULTS: A significant relation was found between low fruit and vegetable intake and irregular breakfast habits. Similarly, low fruit intake was associated with irregular snack consumption, whereas vegetable intake did not prove to be directly related to irregular snack consumption. Different patterns emerged when gender and age were considered as modifying factors in the analyses. A statistically significant relation emerged only among female students for irregular breakfast habits and fruit and vegetable intake. Generally, older female participants with irregular breakfast habits demonstrated a higher risk of low fruit and vegetable intake. Age pattern varied between genders, and between fruit and vegetable consumption. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that for those adolescents who have an irregular consumption of breakfast and snacks, fruit intake occurs with a lower frequency. Lower vegetable consumption was associated with irregular breakfast consumption. Gender and age were shown to be moderators and this indicated the importance of analyzing fruit and vegetable intake and meal types separately. This study also confirmed that health-promotion campaigns that aim to promote regular meal consumption and consumption of fruits and vegetables need to take into account gender and age differences in designing promotional strategies. Future research should identify evidence-based interventions to facilitate the achievement of the Italian guidelines for a healthy diet for fruit, vegetables and meals intake.