Introduction:

In Latin American children and adolescents the increasing tendencies in obesity rates are alarming. This population has a high probability of suffering from noncommunicable diseases at an earlier age.

Objective:

To determine the prevalence of overweight, obesity and fluid intake in children and adolescents in the Capital, Central and Caaguazu in 2016.

Material and Methods:

This was an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study with stratified probabilistic sampling in children and adolescents of the Capital, Central and Caaguazu, during 2016. We sent participants 3 reminders to intake fluid during the 24 hours prior to the interview and we performed determination of anthropometric measures at the Departments’ educational institutions. The data are expressed in measures of central tendency (Median) and dispersion (Standard deviation).

Results:

2279 children and adolescents from the Capital, Central and Caaguazu participated in the study, of which 51.2% (1166) were female, and 54.9% (1245) were between 10 and 14 years old. 18.6% and 26.8% were obese and overweight, respectively. Overweight rates at ages 7 to 9, 10 to 14 and 15 and over were 25.3%, 19.1% and 5.8% respectively (p <0.05). The volume of daily intake of water, infusions, natural juices and carbonated beverages increased with age (p <0.05), while the volume of daily milk intake decreased with age (p <0.05).

Conclusion:

The proportion of children and adolescents who are overweight and obese the Capital, Central and Caaguazu was high. There has been a decrease in the proportion of overweight at older ages, the expected increase in the average daily volume of ingested milk decreases with age while that of carbonated beverages increases.

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