Eating attitudes and its relationship with nutritional status: a micro level study on a group of adolescent girls in the city of Howrah, West Bengal

Abstract

Abstract Background: To assess the relationship between eating attitudes and nutritional status. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 400 adolescent girls (258 aged 14–17 years and 142 aged 18–21 years) from the city of Howrah, West Bengal. Eating attitude was measured using eating distress syndrome (EDS) questionnaire. Nutritional status was assessed using body mass index, waist-hip ratio (WHR) and body fat percentage (BF%). Results: Participants with disordered eating attitudes revealed significantly higher values for body mass index (BMI), WHR and BF% than those with normal eating attitudes (p≤0.01). Hierarchical linear regression analyses show that eating attitudes and socio-demographic characteristics (like mothers’ education and occupation, age and birth order of the participants) significantly predict nutritional status. Conclusion: The nutritional status of adolescents depends on their eating attitudes and socio-demographic characteristics.