Determination of nutritional status and habits in adolescents

Adolescence period covers an important period in which growth and development accelerate and permanent situations and habits are acquired in human life. Nutrition in this period also plays a big role in this situation. This study was conducted with a total of 200 adolescent individuals , 92 girls and 108 boys, residing in Gaziantep city center, Şehitkamil district, in order to determine the nutritional status and habits of adolescent individuals. A face-to-face survey was conducted in the study. In the applied questionnaire , questions about anthropometric measurements and nutritional habits were included. Analysis of the data was done in SPSS 26 program. Chi-square test was used to determine categorical variables, and p<0.05 value was considered statistically significant in the analysis. When body mass indexes were examined by gender, differences were found between male and female adolescent individuals. 57.1% (12) of the participants who were underweight according to their bki values were girls and 42.9% (9) were boys. Of those with normal Bki values, 52.3% (69) were girls and 47.7% (63) were boys. Of those who are overweight, 28.2% (11) are girls and 71.8% (28) are boys. All of the obese individuals are male individuals. When the ratios are examined, it is seen that male individuals are more unhealthy than females in terms of body mass index. Considering the frequency of fast-food consumption, the rate of those who never consume fast-food is 5% (10), the rate of those who consume it once a week is 28.5% (57), the rate of those who consume it 2-4 days a week is 43% (86), 5-7 days a week The rate of those consuming it among the consumers was found to be 19.5% (39) and the rate of those consuming it once a month was 4% (8). Looking at the rates, it was determined that the fast-food consumption rates of the participants were generally high regardless of gender. In line with the data and analyzes obtained from the study, it was determined that a significant portion of the individuals participating in the study had serious problems related to nutrition. In order to prevent this situation, it is recommended to make the right education and practices both at school and in the family.