Anthropometric Profile and Nutritional Intake in a Tunisian Population of Medical Students

Abstract

Young students, in particular those in the medical field, seem to have poor eating habits and therefore inadequate nutritional intake. We aimed to study the anthropometric and nutritional profile of a Tunisian population of medical students. We conducted a descriptive cross-sectional study at the Medical University of Tunis between November 2019 and May 2020. It included 250 students. Each student benefited from a dietary survey and anthropometric measurements. A female predominance was noted in 71.2% of cases. The mean BMI was 23.28 [16.01-35.67] kg/m2. Abdominal obesity was present in 30% of cases. More than a third of the students had a hypocaloric (38.4%) or hypoglucidic (41.2%) intake. The majority (82.4%) had a high protein intake and 51.6% had a high fat intake. Regarding micronutrients, iron deficiency was noted in more than half of the cases (55.8%). Insufficient vitamin D intake was found in two-thirds of the cases (68.8%). Dietary fiber intake was insufficient in most students (84.4%). These results justify the need for providing nutritional education among medical students in order to preserve the physical and mental health of future caregivers.