ECE2024 Eposter Presentations Diabetes, Obesity, Metabolism and Nutrition (383 abstracts)
1National Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, Nutrition A, tunis; 2Faculty of Medicine of Tunis, Tunis, Tunisia; 3National Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, Outpatient department, tunis; 4National Institute of Nutrition and Food Technology, Nutrition C, tunis
Introduction: Childhood obesity is a major global health problem that has reached alarming levels. We conducted our study to determine the influence of environmental factors on this international scourge.
Methods: It was a comparative study involving 50 obese children (G1) and 35 normal-weight children (G2) aged between 6 and 13 years old. Our study was conducted in the outpatient department of Bechir-Hamza Childrens Hospital of Tunis, Tunisia from December 26, 2022 to February 1, 2023. Obesity was determined by WHO growth charts sex-specific BMI for age
Results: We included 85 participants with a mean age of 8.9±3 years for G1 and 8.03±3 for G2 (P=0.22). Obese participants were predominately females (64%). No significant difference in educational levels between G1 and G2 was found (P=0.41), nor in those of their parents (P=0.8). While a tendency for working mothers to have obese children was noted, the association wasnt significant (G1: 48% vs G2: 35%, P=0.23). Besides, socio-economic status was comparable between the two groups (P=0.53). Both G1 and G2 lived mostly in urban areas (G1: 66% vs G2: 68%, P=0.7). Furthermore, G1 and G2 had comparable TV-watching time (P=0.06). However, almost all participants of G1 used cell phones (98%) vs 85% for G2 (P=0.03). In addition, the daily duration of mobile phone use was significantly higher in G1 than in G2 (P<0.01).
Conclusion: These findings emphasize the complex link between environmental factors and childhood obesity, highlighting the need for targeted interventions in addressing this public health challenge