[Dietary habits in primary school children. Role of school meals and parents's social class]. / Il profilo nutrizionale nei bambini delle scuole elementari. Il ruolo della refezione scolastica e della classe sociale dei genitori.

ABSTRACT

Present paper reports the results of a survey on dietary habits of 1,398 children attending first class of primary school in Trento Province (northern Italy). The following items were investigated frequency of breakfast and foods intake; frequency of foods at school. The consumption of tracer foods as vegetables, fruit and sweets was also investigated. The results were analyzed according gender, area of residence, teaching method (full time or not) and educational level of parents. The data about nutritional style are satisfactory even if they are strongly associated to education level of parents, above all of the mother. The adequacy of nutritional style is increasing with the increasing of education level. School meal, offering selected foods to all children attending full time teaching section, can re-equilibrate nutritional style, decreasing the differences associated to education level of the parents. Present data can be used for implementing and improving health promotion action on correct dietary habits in childhood, keeping count of the role of education level of the parents.