Year: 2024
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Introduction Research exploring factors that may influence the diet quality of adolescents in the Middle East are very limited. We aimed to investigate factors associated with diet quality and the weight status of adolescents in Saudi Arabia. Methods A cross-sectional study that included 638 healthy adolescents aged between 11 and 18 years who were randomly recruited from 16 private and public middle- and high-schools located in two Saudi cities (Jeddah and Madinah). All participants were given an envelope for parents to collect socioeconomic data. Diet quality and anthropometric data of adolescents were evaluated at school. Results Median diet quality score was higher among males compared to female adolescents (10.00 (8.00–11.00) vs. 9.00 (8.00–10.0), respectively, p = 0.018). Median diet quality score was significantly higher among adolescents residing in Jeddah compared to adolescents residing in Madinah (10.00 (9.00–11.0) vs. 9.00 (8.00–10.0), respectively, p = 0.002). Stepwise linear regression analysis indicated that city of residence (B = −0.53, SE = 0.16 [95% CI: −0.83 to −0.22]), and child’s sex (B = −0.34, SE = 0.15 [95% CI: −0.64 to −0.05]) were associated with diet quality scores of adolescents in Saudi Arabia. Discussion Future longitudinal research should be directed to further investigate other possible factors influencing the diet quality of adolescents and individuals from other age groups in Saudi Arabia.
Source: Frontiers in Public Health
Author: Walaa Abdullah Mumena
Institutions: Saudi Electronic University, Taibah University
Language: English
Topic: Nutritional Studies and Diet
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,295
OpenAlex ID: W4401745892