Estudio y promoción de hábitos alimentarios saludables y de actividad física entre los adolescentes españoles: programa TAS (Tú y Alicia por la Salud)

Obesity, overweight and overall inadequate habits have alarmingly increased across the world over the past four decades. More worrisome is the increase in the number of obese children and adolescents. Obesity in childhood in a Public Health problem worldwide, and its association with other diseases, both in childhood and in adult life, as well as its high prevalence, makes it essential to develop early and precise intervention from different areas. The TAS program, (Tú y Alicia por la Salud-Alice and you for Health), aims to promote healthy eating and physical activity through cooking and active leisure. An educational intervention was carried out in the classroom, measured by food surveys and the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents PAQ-A questionnaire (before and after) in 2,516 students aged 13 and 14 yrs. from 79 schools distributed in the 17 Autonomous Regions in Spain. Overall, adolescents do not comply with the dietary guidelines and recommendations for physical activity by the Spanish Society of Community Nutrition (SENC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), respectively. In the vast majority of the participants, intake of fruit and vegetables was less than recommended, while the consumption of meat, pastries, snacks and fried foods exceeded recommendations. As for physical activity, there was a generalized lack of attention and little dedication to non-sedentary activities. In conclusion, Spanish adolescents show low adherence to recommendations given by SENC and WHO.