Hábitos de alimentación de pacientes con obesidad severa

Introduction: Severe obesity is a health problem that has medical, emotional and economic consequences. The etiology of severe obesity is multifactorial; howe- ver, it is known that the eating habits represent a major factor in the development of this disease. Objective: This study aimed to identify eating patter- ns and specific habits that need to be changed to achie- ve weight loss. Method: An observational, descriptive, retrospec- tive and cross-sectional study with 250 candidates for bariatric surgery, 79.2% women and 20.8% men aged 37.7 ± 10.2 years and 44.3 ± 7.7 kg/m 2 BMI patients was performed. Results: It was found that "drinking water", "eat fas- ter than most people", "leave the plate empty", "have long fasts", "sweet cravings", and "drinking soda" were the most common habits in patients with severe obesi- ty. The existence of significant differences between the habits of men and women and between BMI strata or groups are also discussed. "Snacking" and "eat until you feel uncomfortable" were significantly different between men and women and "eat by yourself because you feel ashamed of eating with others" was significant between BMI strata. Discussion: It was concluded that it is important that the treatment of these patients includes assessment te- chniques and behavior modification aimed at these habits. It is recommended to include in future studies patients with normal weight and overweight as well as the use of instruments with adequate psychometric properties.