Avaliação do consumo de batata-doce (ipomoea batatas) em praticantes de musculação

Introduction: Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a vegetable that belongs to the Convolvulaceae family, a source of carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins, considered an excellent food option for physical exercise practitioners. Objective: To evaluate the consumption of sweet potato by bodybuilders. Materials and methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive research with a quantitative approach, carried out in gyms in Caxias-MA. The consumption assessment was carried out through a questionnaire with multiple choice questions. The sample consisted of 98 interviewees, gym goers, all of whom voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. The research was approved by the Research Ethics Committee-CEP of the Centro Universitário de Ciências e Tecnologia do Maranhão-UNIFACEMA with opinion no. 2,492,652. Results and discussion: Regarding the profile of those evaluated, it can be seen that 68% of bodybuilders were women, between the ages of 18 to 35 years, 54% attended higher education, and have one to three years of bodybuilding. Regarding sweet potato consumption, 89% stated that they consumed it, and that the most common form of preparation was boiled, in which the potato was used mainly in snacks, and 95% of respondents observed the condition of this food before buying it. Among the factors that influence the purchase of potatoes, 76% reported the nutritional value and 22% the consumption habit. Conclusion: The evaluated bodybuilders present the habit of consuming sweet potatoes, mainly cooked and in snacks, and during the purchase they considered the nutritional value as a determining component for acquisition.