Evaluación del consumo de macronutrientes, Sodio, Calcio y Azúcares añadidos de acuerdo a las recomendaciones de la OMS en adolescentes de 9 a 18 años de Cuenca y Nabón

Background: The Adolescence is a period of accele-rated growth in which a series of physical changes oc-cur, leading to a greater demand for nutritional needs, energy, carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and mi-nerals. These characteristics determine the possibility of nutritional deficiencies that occur at this age if the in-take is not adequate.ObjEctivE: The objective of this study is to evaluate the intake of macronutrients, sodium, calcium and added sugar in adolescents of Cuenca and Nabón according to the recommendations established by the WHO. Materials And Method: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted from January 2008 to April 2009 in 765 adolescents from 8th, 9th and 10th grade basic education in Cuenca and Nabón (Ecuador). The collec-tion of dietary intake was through a reminder of 24-hours that was applied in 2 non-consecutive days. The Softwa-re Lucille 0.1 was used for the intake and calculation of ingested food. Data analysis was performed using the statistical program STATA 12, which determined the daily intake of nutrients that were adjusted for the total energy and calculated according to the percentage of adolescents that follows the WHO recommendations.rEsults: The intake of carbohydrates (80%), fats (76%) and proteins (67%) in most adolescents are within the range recommended by the WHO; however, in the case of consumption of sodium and added sugar, the values of more than half of adolescents are above re-commendations. Thus, only about 1% of the population studied meets the daily requirements of calcium con-sumption.cOnclusiOn: This population of adolescents presents an imbalance in dietary intake, especially of micronu-trients and added sugar. Therefore, intervention programs in healthy eating and prevention of obesity and hypertension are necessary especially in educational institutions.