Overweight, obesity and lipid changes prevalence in children assisted in an outpatient clinic of a university in southern Santa Catarina

Abstract

Introduction: Childhood overweight has increased significantly in recent decades and represents a major challenge, as it is a risk factor for the early development of comorbidities and obesity in adulthood. Dyslipidemia is a risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis and is directly linked to being overweight. The present study sought to describe the prevalence of overweight, obesity and dyslipidemic alterations and the association between nutritional status and sociodemographic, perinatal and dyslipidemic variables in children treated at an Ambulatory in the South of Santa Catarina. Materials and Methods: Analytical cross-sectional study using medical records of children between five and ten years old, attended at a University Outpatient Clinic in Tubarão. A collection form developed by the authors was used and the BMI was subsequently calculated, and the WHO growth curves were used to define the nutritional status. Results: 430 children were analyzed, being 225 boys, with a mean age of 7.03 years. It was observed that 1.6% were underweight, 58.1% eutrophic, 20.2% overweight and 20% obese. Most were born at term, without complications in the perinatal period, 84.3% were breastfed and 12.3% of the children had a diagnosis of dyslipidemia. There was a positive association only between nutritional status and the variables breastfeeding (p=0.002) and diagnosis of dyslipidemia (p<0.001). Conclusion: It was observed that 40.2% of children are overweight, with a slightly higher prevalence in males. In addition, there was a positive association between nutritional status and the variables breastfeeding and diagnosis of dyslipidemia.