The promotion of health in schools, through educational methods, can lead to satisfactory
results in the physical, mental, and social development of school-age children, as well as
contribute to the formation of their habits and behaviors throughout life. Thus, the objective of
this study was to conduct nutritional and dental assessments among private school students in
Palmas (TO), in order to propose an educational intervention aimed at promoting a healthier
lifestyle. This is a cross-sectional study, which included anamnesis regarding habits and
lifestyle, as well as anthropometric, dietary, and dental evaluations. Subsequently, a cycle of 10
workshops was proposed and tested in a pilot study with the studied child population. A total
of 53 children participated in the study, with the majority being female (60,4%), an average age
of 90,3 ± 3,2 months, and a prevalence of normal weight (64,7%). However, it was observed
that 33,3% of the children were overweight; there was also a high consumption of industrialized
and ultra-processed foods (68,4%). Regarding daily intake of macronutrients and energy, 65,8%
had an adequate intake of carbohydrates, 94,7% for proteins, 39,5% for lipids, and 71,1% for
energy. In terms of daily micronutrient intake, only vitamin B12 showed a high adequacy level
(78,9%). For the other evaluated micronutrients, high prevalence rates of inadequacy were
observed for vitamin A (89,5%), vitamin D (97,4%), calcium (97,4%), and iron (52,6%). In the
dental analysis, it was found that the children had a Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (SOHI)
considered good (65,9%), with 10,4% of the 997 evaluated teeth being decayed, predominantly
with code 1 (60%), which indicates the presence of opacity in pits and fissures visible with a
dry surface. Therefore, given the diagnosis of nutritional inadequacies and the presence of
dental caries, there is a need for an intervention focused on food education, nutrition, and dental
health with the children.
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