Nutritional status and associated factors among high school students at central region of Vietnam: a cross-sectional study

Background: Adolescents have been shown to be a vulnerable group to malnutrition. However, there is a lack of attention to the nutritional status of high school students, who are in the transitional phase from adolescence to adulthood, during which nutrition plays a key role. Our study aims to investigate nutritional status and associated factors among high school students at central region of Vietnam. Method: We conducted a cross-sectional study among students from four high schools in Hue City (n=739). Nutritional status was assessed using height-for-age and BMI-for-age indicators based on the WHO 2007 standards. Demographic characteristics and dietary behaviors were collected through a self-administered questionnaire. Logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) to explore factors associated with nutritional status of students. Results: Approximately 3.2% were classified as stunted. About 6.0% were identified as thinness, while 11.9% and 2.6% were classified as overweight and obese, respectively. Additionally, students from high-income households were significantly less likely to be stunted (OR = 0.254; 95% CI: 0.076–0.853). Conclusion: Our study contributes to the growing evidence of the double burden of malnutrition among adolescents. Additionally, we highlight the significant influence of household income on stunting, underscoring the importance of improving economic conditions to achieve better nutritional outcomes.