Predictors of Nutrition Awareness and Behaviors and Physical Activity in Fifth Grade Elementary School Students in Ghods City

Physical activity and nutrition are important topics in adolescent health. This study aimed to determine the predictors of nutritional knowledge, behaviors, and physical activity in fifth-grade elementary school female students

This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study was performed on 480 female students in the fifth grade of the elementary school in Gods city in 2020-2021 by cluster random sampling. Data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire two-part questionnaire of contextual questions and questions about knowledge, nutritional and physical activity, virtual in the Shad messenger. The content validity ratio and content validity index was used to determine validity, and the intra-cluster correlation index to determine the reliability, of the questionnaire. In data analysis, descriptive statistical tests, Pearson         
correlation coefficient, and multiple regression analysis were performed using SPSS 27.

The results of multiple regression analysis showed the effect of nutritional knowledge variables on nutritional behavior (p <0.001, β = 0.159) and physical activity knowledge on nutritional behavior (p = 0.008, β = 0.120) if the Physical activity knowledge variable was not effective on physical activity behavior and also nutritional knowledge variable had no effect on physical activity behavior.

Increasing knowledge of nutrition and physical activity improves students' nutritional behavior, but this increase in knowledge does not affect physical activity behavior. The sedentary lifestyle and the presence of the Covid-19 pandemic appear to have significantly reduced physical activity. By increasing knowledge, nutritional behavior and physical activity can be improved to some extent