INTRODUCTION:

Adolescents constitute one- fifth of the population in the world, out of which 84 percent are among the developing counties. According to the UNICEF, India is home 243 billion adolescents ranging from 10-19 years .Adolescence is the transitional phase of life from childhood to adulthood, during which period, growth spurt with rapid increase in height and weight, psychological and sexual maturity with cognitive development are observed among adolescents ^[1]. Adolescence is a very unique stage in life as it brings about intense physical, psychosocial and cognitive development.

Nutrients are components in foods that an organism uses to survive and grow. Macronutrients provide the bulk energy an organism's metabolic system needs to function while micronutrients provide the necessary cofactors for metabolism to be carried out^[2]. Human nutrition refers to the provision of essential nutrients necessary to support human life and health. The nutritional requirements such as macronutrients like proteins and micronutrients including vitamins and minerals are high during the puberty of adolescents to meet the demand of increased nutritional needs as the adolescents gain up to 50% of their adult weight and skeletal mass, more than 20% of their adult height during this period^[3].

According to the UNICEF, in India a large population of adolescents are anaemic, 56% girls and 30% of boys. Anaemia among adolescents adversely affects these people’s growth, resistance to infections, cognitive development and work productivity. Peer pressure, parents’ dietary habits and media exposure influence the dietary intake of this age group^[1]. Despite implementation of various National Nutrition Programmes at the community level for quite a long time, impact evaluations showed poor coverage, because of low-awareness among beneficiaries due to weak implementation of IEC (Information, Education and Communication) components in the programmes^[4].

Therefore, a study was conducted to assess the level of knowledge among adolescents about nutrition and its importance in an attempt to bring about overall well-being.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

A self-formulated questionnaire with 20 open ended questions each with 3 options to choose from was distributed to an adolescents population, ranging from an age group of 17-19 years belonging to various areas of Chennai and all undergoing professional education through a web link. The questionnaire was distributed to 100 candidates. The 20 questions were uploaded onto survey planet, a survey formulating website. The link was circulated among the candidates through social media. The results were collected and analysed accordingly using Micro soft excel. The survey questions along with their answers are attached herewith.

Questionnaire:

Table 1: how many times do you eat in a day?

· 3

· 4

· 3 or less

Table 2: Do you skip breakfast?

· Yes

· No

Table 3: which of the following is an important part of your daily diet?

· Proteins carbohydrates and fats

· Iron and calcium

· Dietary fibre and vitamins

Table 4: do you often eat out at hotels?

· Yes

· No

Table 5: do you exercise daily?

· Yes

· No

Table 6: Have to ever visit a nutritional professional?

· Yes

· No

Table 7: what nutritional pattern do you use in your daily routine?

· Using milk products with reduced fat content

· Trimming skin from poultry products

· Using olive oil instead of cooking oil

Table 8: what is the nature of your daily routine?

· Sedentary

· Moderately active

· Active

Table 9: what is the best way to energize yourself?

· Chocolate

· Energy drink

· Coffee

Table 10: how fit do you rate yourself?

· 1

· 2

· 3

RESULTS:

From the survey distributed it was found that only 57% of the study population have 3 meals a day whereas the rest have less than three meals. More than half the population skip breakfast. Only 16% of the adolescents are aware of the importance of iron and calcium intake and an even smaller population of about 6% consumes dietary fibre that is an important component of daily nutritional requirement.

In this study we have found out that57% of the people consume animal fat daily and about 50% of the adolescents eat out at hotel as ahabit. 48% of these people prefer to eat fast food. 53 % of the people who do exercise prefer to do cardio whereas 13% of the people prefer yoga. About 55% of the people find it hard to climb stairs and 42% of the study population consider themselves as obese. About 47% of the people prefer to get self-help from the internet to maintain their their nutritional status. A surprising 62% of the population has visited a nutritional professional at this young age.

DISCUSSION:

Nutrition or food in layman terms is essential for the proper growth, development and function of the human body. Since young age is a period of rapid personal, physical & intellectual development , the effects of poverty, illiteracy as well as lack of nutritional & health care are further magnified by gender discrimination, children of this age group need to be addressed as special target category by development programmes^[5]. In today’s world there is a necessity to create awareness among the younger generation that without doubtis the future of our society, about providing proper nutrition for oneself. A self formulated questioner was distributed and then evaluated. The level of awareness is analysed from these questionnaire.

Even in this fast paced way of living about 57% of the Adolescents manage to have 3 meals a day and the among the rest of them about 57% skip breakfast and are not aware about the ill effects of this action. In other similar studies, conducted in the Middle East, Skipping breakfast was reported by 14.9% of students and this habit did not differ by age, sex, body mass index or social class ^[6]. In this age group of people among 78% of them there is high awareness about the necessity of a diet with proper protein, carbohydrate and fat intake. Moreover, recent knowledge of food and nutrition in teenagers in schools and media have knowledge about the health benefits of food such as , Eating foods with excessive fat requirements would cause obesity. Eating fruits and vegetables is a source of vitamin, mineraland fibres. Ways to purgeextra skin and maintenance of fitness can be seen as thebasic knowledge that teens know already ^[7]. In this study only about 57% of the study population report having a moderately active life style and for about 56% of them exercise is part of their daily routine .A nutritional awareness study conducted in the US, shows that females who participated in the program reported a significant improvement in knowledge and awareness regarding their diet as well as in their actual eating habits. They also reported increased intensity when exercising, and improved knowledge and positive intentions to engage in more heart-healthy exercise. Males gained nutrition knowledge and appeared to modify their salt use^[8].

Anotherstudy suggests that for enhancement of fitness it is reasonable to advise obese youths to exercise as vigorously as they can sustain. However, improvements in body composition can apparently be obtained by both moderate and vigorous exercise, with no clear effect of intensity ^[9]
[10].Also, High-calorie food consumption and exercise is associated with attempts at weight change. Unhealthy eating to change weight highlights the need for effective nutrition and weight counselling among adolescents now a days ^{[11] [12].}

The World Wide Web (WWW) poses a distinct capability to offer interventions tailored to the individual's characteristics. This study says that about 47% of the urban population prefers to go to the internet to find solutions for their fitness problems. To fine tune the tailoring process, studies are being conducted to explore how Internet accessibility and usage are related to demographic, psychosocial, behavioural, and other health related characteristics ^[13][14].Also,the ﬁndings from another study demonstrated that factors such as gender, age, and geographical location seem to inﬂuence youth obesity. Youth living in rural areas were less physically active than their counterparts living in urban or rural environments .Young males of “normal” weight were more active than their overweight and obese counterparts. Moreover, males were generally more active than females, with females exhibiting higher rates of obesity. ^{[15][16][17].}finally, and brought into alignment with desired consequences. Educators and practitioners should recognize the dilemmas adolescents face in making food choices and help them develop strategies for balancing less healthful with more healthful food items, through: (a) personal food decision-making rules, (b) effective negotiations with family members; and (c) appropriate interaction patterns with peers ^[18][19].

CONCLUSION:

From the above results , a conclusion can be drawn saying that the young adults of this generation and of this urban locality are aware of nutrition and its significance in life , various attempts to lead an active and productive life are being made . Even so activities such as yoga and exercise ought to be added into the daily routine .It is also an opinion that since the study was conducted in an urban area where the study population is exposed to a different type of environment and has had more of upbringing where they are taught to pay attention to one’s physical and mental well-being, they are more aware about nutrition and its importance. The same study done in a different locality, say a rural one may provide us with a different result. Factors such as economic, academic,social upbringing,peer pressure,

Also the findings so far suggest thatfactors suchas norms, role models, social support, and opportunities to practice a healthybehaviour have the potential to affect positively the dietary and physical activity in teenagers. Interventions that aim to increase opportunities at school and colleges to practice healthy eating and physical activity may be effective, especially in promoting and supporting healthybehavioural changes among students^[20].Overall, healthy eating as a goal in its own right is notably absent from the data and would appear to be ignored due to the competing pressures to eat unhealthily and to lose weight ^[21], to maintain the so called social status . Therefore, steps should be taken to increase the level of awareness about proper nutrition amongthe young adults for their general well-being and also to increase the overall productivity in the society.

REFERENCE:

1. Rao DR, Vijayapushpam T, Rao GS, Antony GM, Sarma KV. Dietary habits and effect of two different educational tools on nutrition knowledge of school going adolescent girls in Hyderabad, India. European journal of clinical nutrition. 2007 Sep 1; 61(9):1081-5.

2. Whitney, Elinor and Sharon Rolfs. 2005. Understanding Nutrition, 10th edition, p 6. Thomson-Wadsworth.

3. Spear BA. Adolescent growth and development. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. 2002 Mar 1:S23.

4. Rao DR, Vijayapushpam T, Rao GS, Antony GM, Sarma KV. Dietary habits and effect of two different educational tools on nutrition knowledge of school going adolescent girls in Hyderabad, India. European journal of clinical nutrition. 2007 Sep 1;61(9):1081-5.

5. Patel H, Solanki H, Gosalia V, Vora F, Singh M. A study of awareness of nutrition and anaemia among college going students of Mahila College of Bhavnagar. Community Med. 2013;4(2):300-3.

6. Abalkhail B, Shawky S. Prevalence of daily breakfast intake, iron deficiency anaemia and awareness of being anaemic among Saudi school students. International journal of food sciences and nutrition. 2002 Jan 1;53(6):519-28.

7. Ruamsup J. Knowledg, Awareness and practice about Foods and Nutrition of Adolescence in Muang District, Prachinburi Province.

8. Perry CL, Klepp KI, Halper A, Dudovitz B, Golden D, Griffin G, Smyth M. Promoting healthy eating and physical activity patterns among adolescents: a pilot study of ‘Slice of Life’. Health Education Research. 1987 Jun 1;2(2):93-103.

9. Gutin B, Barbeau P, Owens S, Lemmon CR, Bauman M, Allison J, Kang HS, Litaker MS. Effects of exercise intensity on cardiovascular fitness, total body composition, and visceral adiposity of obese adolescents. The American journal of clinical nutrition. 2002 May 1;75(5):818-26.

10. Strong WB, Malina RM, Blimkie CJ, Daniels SR, Dishman RK, Gutin B, Hergenroeder AC, Must A, Nixon PA, Pivarnik JM, Rowland T. Evidence based physical activity for school-age youth. The Journal of pediatrics. 2005 Jun 30;146(6):732-7.

11. Middleman AB, Vazquez I, Durant RH. Eating patterns, physical activity, and attempts to change weight among adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health. 1998 Jan 31;22(1):37-42.

12. Story M, Neumark-Sztainer D, Sherwood N, Stang J, Murray D. Dieting status and its relationship to eating and physical activity behaviors in a representative sample of US adolescents. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 1998 Oct 31;98(10):1127-35.

13. Sun P, Unger JB, Palmer PH, Gallaher P, Chou CP, Baezconde-Garbanati L, Sussman S, Johnson CA. Internet accessibility and usage among urban adolescents in Southern California: implications for web-based health research. CyberPsychology & Behavior. 2005 Oct 1;8(5):441-53.

14. Moreno MA, Parks MR, Zimmerman FJ, Brito TE, Christakis DA. Display of health risk behaviors on MySpace by adolescents: prevalence and associations. Archives of pediatrics & adolescent medicine. 2009 Jan 5;163(1):27-34.

15. Al-Nuaim AA, Al-Nakeeb Y, Lyons M, Al-Hazzaa HM, Nevill A, Collins P, Duncan MJ. The prevalence of physical activity and sedentary behaviours relative to obesity among adolescents from Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia: rural versus urban variations. Journal of nutrition and metabolism. 2012 Jan 23;2012.

16. Khalaf A, Ekblom Ö, Kowalski J, Berggren V, Westergren A, Al-Hazzaa H. Female university Students’ physical activity levels and associated factors—a cross-sectional study in southwestern Saudi Arabia. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2013 Aug 9;10(8):3502-17.

17. Lau XC, Chong KH, Poh BK, Ismail MN. Physical activity, fitness and the energy cost of activities: implications for obesity in children and adolescents in the tropics. Adv Food Nutr Res. 2013 May 27;70:49-101.

18. Contento IR, Williams SS, Michela JL, Franklin AB. Understanding the food choice process of adolescents in the context of family and friends. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2006 May 31;38(5):575-82.

19. Contento IR. Nutrition education: Linking research, theory, and practice. Jones & Bartlett Learning; 2007.

20. Kubik MY, Lytle L, Fulkerson JA. Fruits, vegetables, and football: findings from focus groups with alternative high school students regarding eating and physical activity. Journal of Adolescent Health. 2005 Jun 30;36(6):494-500.

21. Stevenson C, Doherty G, Barnett J, Muldoon OT, Trew K. Adolescents’ views of food and eating: identifying barriers to healthy eating. Journal of adolescence. 2007 Jun 30;30(3):417-34.

Received on 05.05.2016 Modified on 21.05.2016

Research J. Pharm. and Tech. 2016; 9(7):898-902.

DOI: 10.5958/0974-360X.2016.00171.2