OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate the usual diet of obese and overweight children and adolescents, attended at the Pediatric Endocrinology Ambulatory of the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil. METHODS: Overweight (n=15), obesity (n=30) and control (n=21) groups were constituted. The anthropometric evaluation was obtained by Body Mass Index and the usual diet was investigated by self-register. The diet was analysed using the Virtual Nutri 1.0 software. RESULTS: In the female obesity group the intake of total calories and fiber was significantly smaller than in the male control group. There was a high average of protein intake in male overweight and female obesity groups. Negative correlation between Body Mass Index and diet fiber was observed in female obesity group. CONCLUSIONS: In general, the usual diet of obese and overweight children and adolescents was inadequate in relation to protein, lipids and fiber.
obesity; overweight; diet; children; adolescent; food habits
