Nutritional status, knowledge about nutrition and feeding practices of adolescents enrolled in high schools of the town of Formiga/MG

* Department of Food Science – Federal University of Lavras – 37200-000 – Lavras – MG – Brazil. E-mail: wilson@dca.ufl a.br. ** Graduated in Nutrition – UNIFOR – 35570-000 – Formiga – MG – Brazil. ABSTRACT:  This study assessed the nutritional status, feeding practices and knowledge of nutrition of school students enrolled at high schools of the public and private teaching schools of the town of Formiga/MG. To evaluate the nutritional status, percentile Body Mass Index was utilized, adopting the cutting scores proposed by the World Health Organization. The information about feeding practices and knowledge in nutrition was obtained by utilizing self-administered standardized questionnaires. The prevalence of overweight was 11.8% and was signifi cantly higher in the public schools and in males. The low weight was found in only 1.9% of studied population. Little more than a half of the participants indicated correctly the foods rich in fi bers and in proteins, lipids and carbohydrates. Most of the adolescents (65.5%) do not eat fruit and vegetables daily. The daily consumption of milk and dairy products was also low and was signifi cantly higher in the private school network and in the male gender. Overall the results indicate poor eating habits that increase the risk of nutritional disorders.