Comparison of obesity and physical activity levels of adult individuals by examining dietary habits with different parameters

Abstract

Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the dietary habits of adult individuals in detail at the level of different variables and to analyze these habits in depth in terms of obesity and physical activity levels. Methods: In the study, quantitative research methods and a descriptive survey model from general survey designs were used. The research group consisted of 704 adult individuals in Kırıkkale province. The Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ) was used in the study. This is a questionnaire that measures the eating habits of individuals. It was translated into Turkish by Kıraç et al. in 2015 under the name of “TFEQ” and its validity and reliability were proven, and its use in our country was ensured. The questionnaire consists of 18 items. The questionnaire measures the degree of consciously restricting their eating, the level of uncontrolled eating, and the degree of eating when they are emotional. The questionnaire also measures the level of sensitivity to hunger. In this respect, the questionnaire is related to obesity. Since the data were distributed as normal binary, they met the prerequisites for parametric tests. For this reason, an independent sample t test was used for pairwise group comparisons, and an ANOVA test was used for comparisons of three or more groups. In addition, if there was a significant difference in the ANOVA results, the Tukey post hoc test, one of the multiple comparison tests, was applied to determine which groups the difference was between. Results: It was found that men tended to eat when they were more emotional than women, and those who lived in urban areas, did not smoke or drink alcohol, did not have chronic diseases, had a good economic status, and did more physical activity per week had favorable three-factor nutrition levels. Conclusion: The findings of the study reveal that variables such as gender, place of residence, smoking and alcohol use, chronic disease, and economic status have significant effects on nutritional behaviors.