Some aspects of nutritional status of teachers from the Republic of Moldova

Abstract

Introduction. The poor eating habits of the teachers were related to the unbalanced energy intake in relation to energy expenditure, sedentary activities; thus, it was proven to lead to: increased absenteeism from work, reduced productivity, chronic illnesses and reduced life expectancy. Aim of the study. To study nutritional status of teachers from the Republic of Moldova. Materials and methods. The study was descriptive and transversal in design. A random sample of 275 teachers (34 males and 241 females) aged 22 to 60 years from institutions of general education from 17 districts of the Republic of Moldova. A special questionnaire was used, including general data, living and workplace conditions, nutritional and health status. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson's Chi-square test at 5% level of significance was applied to the data. Results. The mean age of teachers was 43±8.32 years, of which 5.2% males and 94.8 females, 67.5% are from rural areas and 32.5% - from urban areas. Regarding the number of meals per day only 5.2 % of them feeds three times a day, 36.4%- less than two times; 35.1 %- don’t kept the account, 67.5%- have breakfast, 13.0 %- they have no opportunity to feed in the morning. In terms of dietary diversification most (51.9%) of the teachers either had at least medium (≤ 1 food group) while 20.8% had high (≤ 3 food groups) dietary diversity. Regarding fruit and vegetables consumption 6.5% doesn’t eat any vegetables and 9.1% doesn’t eat any fruits in day, only 50.7% and 49.1% can afford to eat fresh vegetables and fruits respectively, more than three times in day. More than 33.8 % never eat fish weekly, 64.9% eat fish 2 or 3 times in week, only 1.3 % eat fish daily. 49.4% of teachers never eats in a fast-food restaurant, 24.7% eat two or three times in week, and 26.0% less than once a week. The most preferred fast food meals for teachers are hamburger and fries (36.7%), 34,7 %- soft drinks, 28,6 %-attend fast foods for a coffee. 2.5 % of the teachers are cigarette smokers, and 54.5 % are moderate alcohol consumers respectively. The teachers drink in average 0.8 l/week of alcoholic drinks, the most preferred are: 47%- wine; 35%- beer; 18%-strong drinks (vodka). Conclusions. Teachers health is influenced by a variety of risk factors including a poor and unbalanced diet. Therefore, it is very important to promote the principes of rational nutrition and healthy behavior among teachers.