Objective: To explore the food and nutrient characteristics of children and adolescents with or without overweight/obesity and to provide scientific basis for the development of prevention strategies on overweight/obesity.
Methods: This study included children and adolescents aged 6-17 years who participated in provincial nutrition surveillance which included 90 counties (cities and districts) in Zhejiang Province with a provincial representative. Food consumption was assessed using three consecutive days of 24 h dietary recall, and nutrient intake was calculated using dietary recall in conjunction with the China Food Composition Table. Overweight/obesity was also investigated. Associations were evaluated using ordinal regression models.
Results: The analysis included a total of 1827 children and adolescents. The overweight prevalence was 14.0% and the obesity prevalence was 10.1%. Children and adolescents with overweight/obesity were observed to have a higher intake of carbohydrates, iron, sodium, potassium, and magnesium (F = 3.464, 5.232, 5.619, 3.469, 3.934, p < 0.05), as well as having a higher intake of the food group of cereals, tubers and beans, snacks, and salt (F = 7.348, 6.797, 3.413, p < 0.05) compared to children and adolescents without overweight/obesity. After adjusting for potential confounders via ordinal regression models, children and adolescents with overweight/obesity were observed to have a higher intake of carbohydrates (Wald χ2 = 4.325, p < 0.05). There were significant differences concerning the daily energy provided by snacks, the daily carbohydrate intake provided by snacks, the daily sodium intake provided by snacks, and the proportion of snacks to the food group of cereals, tubers, and beans (F = 8.305 6.316, 13.955, 3.692, p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Children and adolescents with overweight/obesity have presented a high consumption of carbohydrates, which is associated with the food group of cereals, tubers, and beans. Snacks are the main factor leading to the high intake of the food group of cereals, tubers, and beans among children and adolescents with overweight/obesity.
Keywords: China; children; food; nutrient; obesity; overweight.