Italian public school: a pilot study about disorders related to nutrition and their management.
OBJECTIVE
To know how Italian nursery and primary schools survey and manage children with food-related problems.


METHODS
A pilot study during the period March-May 2005, filling out a questionnaire.


METHODS
All nursery and primary schools in a Northern Italian region (Friuli Venezia Giulia).


METHODS
There were 479 eligible schools


RESULTS
Global response rate was of 29.6%. In 77.5% (110/142) of the schools there were children with food-related pathologies. Programs about nutrition were carried out by 44.4% (63/142) of the schools in the previous two years; 9.5% (6/63) dealt with food-related pathologies and 57.1% (36/63) required the intervention of outside experts to have these projects realized. In the same period training courses about nutrition for teachers were conducted in 9.2% (13/142) of the schools.


CONCLUSIONS
Data provide a first overview of the situation in Italy on food-related topics in children attending nursery and primary schools. Therefore many programs could not rely on funds to be developed, but had to use internal resources of the school.
Quattrin
Rosanna
R
DPMSC School of Medicine, University of Udine, Udine, Italy. quattrin.rosanna@auod.sanita.fvg.it
Toffolini
Laura
L
Turello
David
D
Calligaris
Laura
L
Farneti
Federico
F
Brusaferro
Silvio
S
D002446:Celiac Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D015362:Child Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D053198:Child Nutrition Sciences / Q000193:education*; D002664:Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005522:Food Services / Q000592:standards; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D050177:Overweight / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012574:Schools; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires