Nutritional Status of The Adolescents Who Live in Two Orpfıanages in Konya

Abstract

The study \vas carrıed out on (105 boys, 73 girls) 178 adolescents who w er e in 13-18 age groııp and living in t\vo orphanages in Konya. The data about their nutritional habits has been gathered by cjııestionnaires \vhich w er e applied under sııpervision. Additiotıally, their mean daily intakes o f energy and nııtrients have been ascertained from their three-days food consumption. The mean age o f the adolescents was 15.0 ± 1.8 years. The adolescents had the habit o f skipping meal and especially the rate of skipping breakfast was very high (58.3%). They were consuming biscuit, cookies, coke, chocolate, wafer ete. between the meals. They w er e not eating vvillingly nıeaty vegetables, dried legıımes and vegetables cooked with olive oil. The inadequate intake o f milk and milk produets and vegetables \vere a cause o f having vitamin and mineral deficienciesy. Thus, the girls had dietary fibre, calcium, ir on, riboflav'ın, vitamin A, vitamin C and niacin defıciency and the boys had dietary fibre, riboflav'ın and thiamin deficiencies. Mean daily energy intakes o f the boys and the girls were 3186.0 ±598.2 and 2485.4 ±569.3 kilocalories, respectively. Almost ali o f the adolescents have \vrong nutritional habits. The meals o f the orphanages should be eııriched for some nııtrients and also the adolescents should be educated about nutrition.