PERCEPÇÃO E INSATISFAÇÃO CORPORAL EM ESTUDANTES DA SAÚDE: INTERFACES COM O ESTADO NUTRICIONAL E TRANSTORNOS ALIMENTARES.

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.0191225280413

• Palavras-chave: Avaliação nutricional; Estado nutricional; Imagem corporal; Insatisfação corporal.

• Keywords: Nutrition Assessment; Nutritional Status; Body Image; Body Dissatisfaction.

• Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To assess the importance of body image perception in university students in the health field, considering its association with nutritional status and the risk of developing eating disorders. METHODS: This is a narrative review based on the literature, with a qualitative approach, of a basic nature and with a descriptive and explanatory objective, carried out in the following databases: PubMed/Medline, Web of Science and Scopus, using the following search keys in all databases: (“body image” OR “body dissatisfaction”) AND (“healthcare students” OR “university students”) AND (“nutritional status” OR “BMI”) AND (“eating disorders” OR “anorexia nervosa” OR “bulimia nervosa” OR “orthorexia”). The following inclusion criteria were adopted: original studies with full text available online, studies involving university students in the health field, and research addressing body image perception, nutritional status, eating disorders or habits. A total of 170 articles were identified in the literature from the search using the aforementioned descriptors, and based on the eligibility criteria, 28 studies remained to support this review. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The selected studies used anthropometric methods such as BMI to verify that the nutritional status of university students is associated with metabolic risks such as obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and cardiovascular diseases. Health students show high dissatisfaction with their body image even when they are of normal weight, due to aesthetic standards promoted by the media and fashion industry. Such behaviours encourage inappropriate eating habits and consequently contribute to the development of eating disorders such as anorexia, bulimia nervosa and binge eating, especially among female students. CONCLUSION: Body image perception among health students can be a determining factor in the development of eating disorders. In addition, it has been found that academic routine, idealised aesthetic standards and the adoption of inappropriate eating habits contribute to greater body dissatisfaction and dysfunctional eating behaviours, compromising the physical and mental health of this population.