TITLE:
Conceptions of Brazilian Elementary and High School Students about Food Nutrients
AUTHORS:
Andréia de Freitas Zompero, Helenara Regina Sampaio Figueiredo, Tiago Henrique dos Santos Garbim, Karen Mayara Vieira
KEYWORDS:
Health, Nutritional Values, Food Nutrients Tables, Food Education, Teaching Process
JOURNAL NAME:
Creative Education,
Vol.10 No.5,
May
16,
2019
ABSTRACT: The study was undertaken to investigate the conceptions of Brazilian Basic Education (Elementary and High School) Students about food nutrients, food pyramids, processed food labels and nutrition facts tables. The research involved groups from sixth to ninth grades of Elementary School and first to third grades of High School in a public school from Paraná State, Brazil. In this study, 257 students, aged 11 - 17 years old, took part. For the identification of conceptions, group activities were performed using food pyramids, processed food labels and nutrition facts tables, aiming the analysis of their nutritional composition by students. Analysis showed students do not show satisfactory and coherent conceptions about food nutrients, and many students were not able to distinguish nutrients from food. In this sense, we highlight the need of Food Nutrition programs to endorse and include initiatives for students, regarding the positive comprehension of nutrients and their benefits to the body, besides healthy eating habits.