Nutritional status of schoolchildren aged 7-10 years enrolled in public and private schools of Cascavel, Paraná, Brazil

ABSTRACT Objective: To analyze the prevalence of malnutrition, overweight, and obesity in schoolchildren aged 7-10 years from public and private schools of Cascavel, Paraná, Brazil. Methods: Demographic information (sex, age, and type of school) and anthropometric measurements (body mass and height) were collected from 2,180 students (1,693 from public schools and 487 from private schools). The nutritional status of the children was classified according to their body mass index Z-score. Results: The prevalences of malnutrition, overweight, and obesity were 6.1%, 9.8% and 11.1%, respectively. Girls were 15.9% more likely to be malnourished than boys. As for overweight, 10-year-olds were 1.53 times more likely to be overweight than 7-year-olds. Children from private schools were 1.63 times more likely to be overweight and 2.88 times more likely to be obese than their public school peers. Conclusion: The prevalence of malnutrition and excess weight (overweight and obesity) were high, and girls were more likely to be malnourished. Ten-year-olds and children from private schools were the most affected by overweight and obesity.