Stages of behavior change for physical activity and food consumption in primary health care professionals

Introduction and objective: Physical activity and diet are the main variables that influence the health status of the population. The objective was to analyze the factors associated between stages of behavior change related to physical activity and food consumption in Primary Health Care professionals. Materials and methods: cross-sectional and analytical study, carried out with 215 professionals from the family health strategy (esf) of Montes Claros in 2015. Sociodemographic aspects, lifestyle and stages of behavior regarding the practice of physical activity and food consumption were collected. Individuals were grouped into two categories according to the stages of behavior change: active (action and maintenance) and inactive (pre-contemplation, contemplation and preparation), associated with the variables fruits and vegetables, physical activity and nutritional status. Results and discussion: Community health agents (58.0%), nurses (27.0%), nursing technicians (9.0%) and physicians (6.0%) participated. The active stage for the consumption of fruits and vegetables represented 49.8% of the sample, and for the practice of physical activity it was registered 33.5%. When associating the stage of physical activity behavior with the variables fruits and vegetables, physical activity and nutritional status, it can be seen that 74% of the sample is inactive for food and are overweight (74.8%), with no difference significant for physical activity. Considering the self-perception of dietary adequacy, respondents were in the active stage (62.3%), with no statistical difference for physical activity and nutritional status. Conclusion: Changes in the health -related behaviors of the professionals studied are necessary.