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. 2020 Oct 30;12(11):3355.
doi: 10.3390/nu12113355.

Improved Nutritional Knowledge in the Obese Adult Population Modifies Eating Habits and Serum and Anthropometric Markers

Lourdes López-Hernández  1   2 , Francisco Miguel Martínez-Arnau  1   3   4 , Pilar Pérez-Ros  1   4   5 , Eraci Drehmer  6 , Ana Pablos  7
Affiliations

Improved Nutritional Knowledge in the Obese Adult Population Modifies Eating Habits and Serum and Anthropometric Markers

Lourdes López-Hernández et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Multicomponent lifestyle interventions achieve good results in the management of obesity among the adult population. However, their implementation in certain populations poses difficulties. A good level of nutritional knowledge enables people to make changes in their diet that improve their health. This study aims to assess the relationship between nutritional knowledge and nutritional parameters such as dietary intake, anthropometric parameters and biomarkers. A before-after, non-randomized interventional study involving a two-monthly nutritional educational intervention was carried out over 8 months. Anthropometric and biomarker data were collected, and nutritional knowledge was evaluated using the Bach questionnaire and food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The study comprised 66 overweight and obese adults with mean age of 50.23 years. Females predominated (84.8%). At the end of the intervention, nutritional knowledge increased significantly, with a significant reduction in the consumption of sweets, soft drinks, high-fat products, and processed meats, and an increase in the intake of lean meat and poultry. A 3% decrease in body weight was observed. An intervention for the management of obesity in the adult population based on nutritional education achieves weight loss, modifications in eating habits and reduction of fat intake. Increased nutritional knowledge is associated with healthier eating habits and a decreased cardiovascular risk.

Keywords: attitudes; diet; energy expenditure; health knowledge; macronutrients; micronutrients; obesity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study, in the collection, analysis or interpretation of the data, in writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation between change in nutritional knowledge and variation in food servings and C-reactive protein (CRP).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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