Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the body weight control, food habits and nutrient intakes according to the obese index in male middle school students. This study was carried out through questionnaires and measurement by body fat analyzer (Inbody 4.0). The subjects were 275 male middle school students in Iksan, Chonbuk province. The average age, height, weight, and BMI of the subjects were 14.4 years old, 167.8 cm, 60.2 kg and 21.3 kg/m2, respectively. Seventeen point one percent of the subjects were the underweight group, 47.6% were the normalweight group, and 35.3% were the overweight group by the classification of the Korean Pediatrics Society standard. Body fat of underweight, normalweight, and overweight were 16.1%, 19.0%, and 26.6%, respectively. Thirty one point nine percent of underweight, 39.7% of normalweight, and 31.9% of overweight had misperceptions of their weight (p<0.001). Sixty two point two percent of the males were dissatisfied with their body weight, and 55.3% of the whole tried to reduce their body weights. Even though they were normalweight, half of them dissatisfied with their weight. The source of weight control method was friends and family, TV.radio, Internet, and school nutrition education, in order. The subjects exercised 3.4 days per week, 70.2 minutes per day, but it was not different significantly by the obese index. Forty percent of the subjects had meals fast, 58.5% of them have biased food habits even if they didn't differ by the obese index. Activity rate was different by the obese index significantly (p<0.05), the number of severe activity was most in underweight. In conclusion, nutrition education programs should contain the necessity of normalweight, and regularity of life habits and activities for energy expenditure in overweight students. It made them to recognize their weight correctly, establish healthy body images, and raise the ability to promote health and improve nutritional status.

• Keywords: obese index; body weight control; dietary habits