MARKERS OF FOOD CONSUMPTION AND NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN THE INTERIOR OF MARANHÃO

Entering university is a phase marked by excessive changes in the student's life, causing university students several difficulties in taking care of their own nutrition. The objective of this study was to evaluate the food consumption and nutritional status of university students in the interior of Maranhão. This is a descriptive study, with a cross-sectional design, with a quantitative approach. The population investigated were academics from the State University of Maranhão, São João dos Patos Campus, using the Food Consumption Markers questionnaire and an anthropometric assessment. 100 university students of both sexes participated in the research, with an average age of 23±4.7 years. Regarding food consumption, 75 (75%) reported consuming beans, 69 (69%) consuming fresh fruit, 68 (68%) vegetables and/or legumes, 42 (42%) hamburgers and/or sausages, 70 (70%) sweetened drinks, 43 (43%) instant noodles, packaged snacks, or savory biscuits and 52 (52%) the consumption of stuffed biscuits, sweets or sweets the day before. Regarding nutritional status, it was found that the students were within the standards considered normal, 62 (62%) were eutrophic, with a higher prevalence of normal body fat percentage 23 (64%) for males and 21 (33%) for females and with a greater predominance of level 1 visceral fat, 54 (54%). It is therefore concluded that most university students consume healthy foods, however, there is a high prevalence of unhealthy food consumption the day before. Furthermore, the results obtained showed that the nutritional status of the university students investigated are within normal limits.