Diet Habits in Patients with Normal Weight, Overweight and Obesity from 20 to 64 Years from The UMF No. 16 of the IMSS in Cancun, Quintana Roo

Research Article

J Fam Med. 2024; 11(2): 1350.

Diet Habits in Patients with Normal Weight, Overweight and Obesity from 20 to 64 Years from The UMF No. 16 of the IMSS in Cancun, Quintana Roo

Santos-López IC¹*; Gutiérrez-de la Cruz ME²; Paz-Song CA¹

¹Department of Family Medicine, Family Medicine Unit 16 (IMSS), Quintana Roo, Mexico

²Department of Education, Deconcentrated Administrative Operation Body (OOAD), Quintana Roo, Mexico

*Corresponding author: Santos López Isabelita del Carmen Family Medicine Unit 16 (IMSS), Quintana Roo, Mexico. Email: isabelitasantos967@gmail.com

Received: January 29, 2024 Accepted: March 05, 2024 Published: March 12, 2024

Abstract,

Background: Diet habits are all those activities where an individual select, prepares and consumes food, this attitude will be modified according to various sociocultural factors, which leads to nutritional imbalances predisposing to overweight and obesity, a disease that brings with it multiple repercussions to health.

Aim: To determine the eating habits in patients with normal weight, overweight and obesity from 20 to 64 years of age from the family medicine unit 16 of the IMSS in Cancun, Quintana Roo.

Design: Analytic cross-sectional study.

Methods: An observational, cross-sectional, analytical study was carried out in patients from 20 to 64 years of age with normal weight, overweight and obesity in the Family Medicine Unit 16 of Cancun. The following variables were measured: eating habits, body mass index, age, sex, education, marital status, comorbidities, and socioeconomic level. A descriptive statistical analysis of the variables was performed; and to determine differences between habits and the category of body mass index, the Kruskal-Wallis test was used.

Results: A sample of 594 participants was analyzed, of which 39% were men and 61% women. The BMI was distributed as follows: normal weight 33%; overweight 33%; grade 1 obesity, 25%; grade 2, 7%; and grade 3, 2%. The most frequent eating habits were regular with 41%, bad 30%, good 19%, very good 9% and excellent 1%. An association was found between eating habits and BMI category (p 0.002).

Conclusion: These results emphasize the urgent need for interventions aimed at improving eating habits, through the implementation of educational programs on nutrition and the promotion of healthy eating behaviors, since eating habits are associated with weight changes in our population.

Keywords: Diet habit; Body Mass Index; Obesity; Overweight

Introduction,

Diet habits are defined as the process by which individuals select, prepare and consume food, influenced by sociocultural, economic, educational and political factors. These habits are crucial since food provides the nutrients and energy necessary for metabolism and physical activity. Food has evolved from domestic to industrialized, increasing the availability of processed foods. The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies overweight and obesity according to the Body Mass Index (BMI) and considers them a non-communicable pandemic, which increases the risk of conditions such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer [1-2]. Obesity is also linked to decreased life expectancy and although losing a small percentage of body weight can improve health, disease prevention is more effective with weight reduction. Globally, overweight and obesity affect a significant proportion of adults, and Mexico ranks high in these statistics, aggravated by the consumption of ultra-processed foods and food insecurity. Food insecurity in Mexico affects millions, and ultra-processed foods, characterized by their low nutritional content and high energy density, are determining factors in the population's diet. In addition, non-modifiable factors such as genetics and other modifiable factors such as physical activity and tobacco and alcohol consumption play a role in the eating pattern and the risk of overweight and obesity [3-4].

Studies in Mexico reveal poor diet habits and a high consumption of processed foods, with a significant prevalence of overweight and obesity in both adults and children. Early intervention and the development of appropriate strategies are necessary to improve medical care and provide reliable information on dietary habits [5-6]. The main objective of this study was to identify the diet habits in the Family Medicine Unit (FMU) 16.

Material and Methods,

Study Design and Population,

An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted in Quintana Roo, Mexico, between March and july 2023. The research was carried out at FMU 16, of the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS); primary care unit and main health care center in the region. The inclusion criteria were the following: patients aged between 20 and 64 years, of both sexes, with normal weight, overweight and obesity, according to the assigned group. The exclusion criteria were patients on a dietary regimen and with comorbidities that required a specific diet. Incomplete surveys were eliminated.

Variables,

Information was collected in a data collection form in the SPSS version 25 program in Spanish, of the following variables: age, defined as years since birth; education, was the maximum level of education achieved by the patients; marital status was defined as the civil status of the patients; sex, according to phenotypic characteristics; occupation, defined as the work activity; socioeconomic level, according to the Graffar-Méndez method that evaluates the person's status in the social and economic sphere; BMI, according to the result of the Quetelet equation (weight/height2); comorbidities, presence of other diseases in addition to the primary disorder; and diet habits, defined as the relationship between the foods consumed daily and their impact on health.

The instrument called “questionnaire for the assessment and quantification of lifestyle habits related to overweight and obesity” was used to assess diet habits. This tool consists of 37 questions, is validated and was developed by 5 groups of specialists in Endocrinology and Nutrition from the Department of Health Sciences of the University of La Coruña in Spain during 2010 and adapted for the Mexican population in 2018 [7].

Statistical Analysis,

The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics with measures of central tendency and dispersion for quantitative variables; frequencies and percentages for qualitative. In the inferential analysis we used the Kruskall-Wallis test to analyze the differences between BMI and eating habits in the three groups (normal weight, overweight, obesity). A p <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Ethics,

The study was approved by the Local Committee for Ethics and Health Research number 2301; with registration number R-2022-2301-036. The research was carried out under the General Health Law on Health Research, the Declaration of Helsinki and the Bioethical Principles. Due to the type of study, no informed consent was required from the participants.

Results,

A sample of 594 participants was analyzed, of which 39% (n=234) were men and 61% (n=360) women. The average age was 40.8+12.2 years. In terms of education, the most common educational level was bachelor's degree 35% (n=208), followed by high school 30% (n=177), and secondary school 19% (n=111). The main occupation was employee with 57% (n=341), followed by housekeeper with 21% (n=125) and student 11% (n=64). In marital status, the majority were married with 43% (n=257), followed by single 26% (n=155) and concubinage 22% (n=129). The complete characteristics of the variables are shown in Table 1.