Weight misperception and substance use: Brazilian Study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents (ERICA).

BACKGROUND: Adolescence is a crucial period for body image formation. Weight misperception is the discrepancy between individuals' body weight perception and their actual nutritional status. Both weight concerns and substance use are common among adolescents, and there is evidence of an associations between these two variables. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the association between weight misperception and substance use (smoking and alcohol) in a national sample of normal weight Brazilian adolescents. METHODS: Data were obtained from the Brazilian Study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents (ERICA), a cross-sectional, multicenter, national, school-based survey, carried out in 124 municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants from Brazil. The sample included adolescents aged 12-17 years, classified as normal weight by nutritional status evaluation. The following measures were collected: weight underestimation and overestimation (exposure); having tried cigarette smoking, current smoking, current alcohol consumption, binge drinking and current smoking and alcohol consumption(outcomes); macro-region, sex, type of school, and excessive screen time (confounders). The frequency of variables was calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Poisson regression models were used to estimate prevalence ratios (PR). RESULTS: In total, data from 53,447 adolescents were analyzed. Weight misperception was present in a third of the adolescents, with similar prevalence of weight underestimation and overestimation. In adolescents aged 12-14 years, weight underestimation and overestimation were associated with having tried cigarette smoking (PR: 1.18 and 1.43, respectively), current alcohol consumption (PR: 1.33 for both weight misperception categories), and binge drinking (PR: 1.96 and 2.01, respectively). Weight underestimation was associated with both having tried cigarette smoking and current alcohol consumption in boys (PR: 1.14 and 1.16, respectively) and girls (PR: 1.32 and 1.15, respectively). In girls, weight overestimation was associated with all substance use variables (PR between 1.19 and 1.41). CONCLUSIONS: Our results showed an association between weight misperception and having tried cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, and binge drinking in younger adolescents. In addition, weight overestimation was associated with all substance use indicators in girls. Based on our findings, interventions aimed to improve weight perception in normal weight adolescents may contribute to the reduction of substance use in this population.

[School nutrition in 'quilombola' communities: challenges and opportunities]. / Alimentação escolar nas comunidades quilombolas: desafios e potencialidades.

The Brazilian School Nutrition Program (PNAE) is a Food and Nutritional Security (SAN) strategy for public school students. This article seeks to discuss the challenges and opportunities of school nutrition in 'quilombola'* communities and report on the experience of the Cooperation Center for Student Food and Nutrition of the Federal University of Goiás and the Midwest Region (CECANE UFG/ Centro-Oeste). It includes a report on the experience with the systematization on PNAE, SAN and other policies. Continued access and adequate social policies are a challenge for the 'quilombola'* communities. Some economic, structural and social barriers have been identified in PNAE. In this context, Law 11.947/2009 encourages local development, with the acquisition of food from the region, and it establishes differentiated values per capita, which are translated into menus including products inherent to Afro-Brazilian culture that provide at least 30% of daily nutritional requirements. In the nutrition, health and quality of life project of 'quilombola'* schoolchildren, the CECANE UFG/Midwest carry out food and nutritional security actions. The area of school nutrition has proven responsive to local needs and supports the development and promotion of quality of life.