Effects of Diet Pattern on Nutritional Status of Schoolchildren: A Study in One Township of Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Diet pattern plays a key role in determining the nutritional status of children. The study was conducted to find the impact of diet pattern on the nutritional status of 105 school-going children in Navi Mumbai. Data were collected using survey questionnaire including observation and interview technique. Food frequency questionnaires were administered to assess dietary intake. To assess growth status of children, z-scores [weight-for-height (WHZ), height-for-age (HAZ), and weight-for-age (WAZ)] were used. The objectives of the study were to determine diet variety and frequency of food intake, to find the nutritional status using food mean score for anthropometric parameters. The article further reveals the relationship between diet pattern and WAZ, WHZ, and HAZ of primary schoolchildren. Results from the study revealed that there is a variation in the nutritional status of children. The children who eat less dietary variety may be related to malnutrition, while the large variety is related to heavyweight or obesity. The food variety should include all kinds of foodstuff from each category of major group.