Excesso de peso em universitários: diferenças por sexo e fatores associados

Abstract

According to the 2019 National Health Survey, the overweight scenario in adults in Brazil is worrying: about 60% of the adult population is overweight or obese. In the context of higher education, the various academic demands can lead to worse food choices and, consequently, to overweight among university students. The objective of the study was to evaluate the association of associated factors and overweight in university students, considering the differences by sex. The methodology involved a cross-sectional study conducted with 1,315 students from a public university in Uberlândia/MG, using an online questionnaire to collect demographic, socioeconomic, self-rated health, and anthropometric data, from which the nutritional status was categorized as overweight (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m²) and not overweight (BMI < 25 kg/m²), this being the outcome variable. The analysis was performed with descriptive and inferential statistics in Stata 14® software, considering the differences by sex. Regarding the results, in 1,298 students, 40% of men and 32% of women had a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m². In both sexes, it was observed that increasing age OR (4.76; 95% CI) for men aged 30-59 years; OR (4.81; 95% CI) for women aged 30-59 years and a worse self-rated health OR (2.53; 95% CI) for men with poor/very poor health; OR (4.36; 95% CI) for women with poor/very poor health) were associated with a higher chance of being overweight. Income, however, did not show a significant association. For men, living alone reduced the chances of being overweight OR (0.48; 95% CI). The discussion of the study points out that age and self-rated health are associated with the nutritional status of university students, with particularities observed between men and women, according to our objective. The absence of an association between income suggests that direct socioeconomic factors may not be the main determinants of overweight in this population. Finally, the protective effect of living alone among men points to the influence of the living environment on health choices and eating habits, highlighting the importance of considering the household arrangement when planning health promotion interventions in the university context. The conclusion of this research confirmed the association between self-rated health, age, household arrangement, and overweight in university students. The analyses, performed for both sexes, highlighted this relationship, providing important evidence for future actions in university health.