Lifestyle and Nutrition Profile of Overweight and Obese School Children in the Ga-East District of Ghana

Understanding the dietary and physical activity behaviours of children and adolescent can aid the design of effective interventions to control childhood obesity. Our study assessed the dietary and physical activity behaviours and nutritional status of overweight/obese school children. A cross-sectional study design was employed. Information on body weight, height, body fat, food choices, diet and physical activity behaviours were collected on a random sample of 475 school children aged 8-18 years from August 2009 to August 2010. Biochemical data were collected on a sub-sample (n = 107) of the participants. Mean BMI for females and males were 27.0±4.2 and 27.0±7.0 kg/m2, respectively. About 60% reported consuming no fruits or vegetables, whiles 79% preferred fried foods over other forms of cooked food. Majority (60.9%) engaged in <60 min of physical activity a day. Significant number of children had Hb below 12 mg/dL (40.1% of females and 41.8% of males). Acceptable levels of fasting blood cholesterol (<170 mg/dL) and glucose levels (70 to 130 mg/dL) were recorded for majority of the participants (97.2 and 96.3%, respectively). Dietary and physical activity behaviours of the participants were generally poor. High blood glucose and cholesterol levels found among some of the school children studied is a public health issue and calls for immediate action. Innovative ways to improve consumption of fruits and vegetables and increase physical activity among children are needed.