Not all individuals with obesity develop metabolic complications, which has brought about the concepts of metabolically healthy and unhealthy obesity (MHO/MUO). However, inconsistent definitions of these conditions have limited their understanding. We assessed whether a recently-proposed consensus definition for MHO/MUO correlates with adiposity and reflects metabolic risk parameters during puberty. Low-middle income children from the Growth and Obesity Cohort Study (Santiago, Chile) were included (n = 949; 1692 visits at Tanner (T)2, T4 and/or one-year post menarche (1YPM)). Anthropometry, body composition and metabolic parameters were compared between MUO and MHO, and also in children without obesity. The risk for presenting MUO phenotype was significantly elevated with higher waist-height ratio (T2), zBMI (T2, T4), trunk fat, and C-reactive protein (T4). Elevated cardiometabolic indices were important predictors of the “unhealthy” phenotype allocation in children with or without obesity. Our observations suggest that the consensus definition in children at T2, T4 and 1YPM reflects metabolic risk and central obesity. Metabolic health phenotype allocation by this equation enables easy detection of risk factors that call for action to prevent long-term metabolic derangements in children with obesity and, importantly, also those without obesity.

Profesionalismo en el nutricionista: ¿Qué es y cómo incorporarlo en la formación de pregrado?Professionalism in the Dietitian: What is it and how can it be incorporated into undergraduate training?

La educación alimentaria nutricional es la combinación de estrategias educativas, acompañadas de apoyos ambientales, diseñadas para facilitar la adopción voluntaria de elecciones alimentarias que conducen a un estado óptimo de salud y bienestar. La educación alimentaria nutricional tiene tres componentes: 1) motivación, 2) acción y 3) ambiente. Para elegir la técnica de educación adecuada para cada persona, se deben considerar las características psicoemocionales individuales, especialmente las motivaciones para el cambio y el tipo de personalidad, ya que ambos han mostrado ser buenos predictores de la conducta alimentaria. Dentro de los recursos educativos posibles de utilizar para realizar la educación en alimentación nutricional se encuentran indicaciones verbales, material escrito, uso de internet, dispositivos portátiles, aplicaciones de teléfonos inteligentes, e incluso la clase de cocina. La evidencia demuestra que la educación alimentaria nutricional impacta favorablemente la adherencia a las intervenciones nutricionales, lo cual a la vez se ve reflejado en efectos positivos en la salud.