Analysis of current situation of dietary behaviors and the influencing factors among middle school students in Henan Province

Objective To study the status and influencing factors of dietary behaviors among middle school students in Henan Province so as to provide scientific basis for targeted pertinent nutrition intervention.Methods A total of 29 832 students from middle schools and high schools in Henan were selected by stratified cluster sampling method to complete a questionnaire.Results It was found that 10.4% of students drank beverage frequently,17.0% for eating sweet dessert,16.0% for eating fried foods,2.6% for eating fast-food,14.7% for eating roadside market,39.4% had food preferences behavior.Only 31.2% chose to eat fresh fruits frequently,61.2% for eating vegetable,89.4% for having breakfast,and 34.9% for drinking milk (including soybean milk,yogurt,and soymilk).Unconditional Logistic regression analysis showed that being in senior high school and lack of physical activity(watching TV,surfing the Internet,playing computer games more tha 4 h) were risk factors of bad dietary behaviors,while being in city,male,age,having good academic result,and doing physical exercises regularly were protective factors(P<0.05).Conclusion Dietary behavior has become one of the main health problems among middle school students in Henan,and is greatly correlated with the lack of physical exercises.Thus,effective nutritional prevention should be carried out early in order to promote healthy dietary behavior.