IMPACT OF NUTRITION EDUCATION ON OVERWEIGHT ADOLESCENT GIRLS (10-19YEARS) IN THE SELECTED SCHOOLS OF DHAKA CITY

Background and objectives: Overweight among adolescents (10-19 years) is an emerging public health concern alongside under-nutrition in developing countries, like Bangladesh. Overweight adolescents are more likely to become obese in adulthood as well as the consequences associated risk for cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II, osteoarthritis, some types of cancer (colon, breast, kidney) and complication during pregnancy. So it is essential to develop public policies aimed at preventing overweight and reducing overweight rates in the pediatric population. The aim of the study was to see the impact of nutrition education on reducing body weight of the adolescents. Methods: An experimental randomized study containing an intervention (n= 35) and a control group (n=35) was conducted for 4 months among 70 adolescent girls aged 10-19 years in two schools of Dhaka city. At first, screening was carried out through anthropometry (height, weight) to identify 'overweight' following standards of BMI cutoff and enrolled as subjects in both groups. The intervention group received nutrition education of 40-45 minutes long sessions fortnightly for 2 months following a leaflet containing information on healthy life style including food based dietary guidelines, foods to avoid, healthy food choice, demonstration of physical activity, personal hygiene, ideal growth chart, risks and consequence of overweight. The control group was only observed. Data on anthropometry, knowledge, physical activities and food frequency were collected at baseline and end line in both groups. Results: The mean body weight significantly reduced by 910 g in the intervention group while an increase of 160 g was found in the control group (p< 0.05).The percentage of subjects doing physical activities increased almost by 3 fold at the end of intervention compared to baseline. Conclusions: Nutrition education on healthy food habit and life style has a positive impact on overweight prevention among the adolescent girls.