Özet:

Abstract Objective: to evaluate weight gain and associated factors in university students during the first wave of COVID -19. Methods: this is a cross-sectional study carried out in the first half of 2020, using an online semi-structured questionnaire with undergraduate students from a university in southeastern Brazil, analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: 876 students were evaluated (age: median 22±5 years). Showing an increase in appetite increased the odds of weight gain by about 2.5 times, while changes in diet and worrying about weight gain doubled those odds. Obesity increased the odds of weight gain by 276%. On the other hand, higher scores on the “Eating for physical and non-emotional reasons” subscale of intuitive eating was associated with lower chances of students showing this gain. Conclusion: these data point to the need for strategies based on intuitive eating, to minimize the impacts of the pandemic on the eating behavior of university students.

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