Abstract
Objective: To describe the anthropometric profile and body composition of elementary school teachers who work for the state educational system of Montes Claros-MG. Methods: This paper is classified as a cross-sectional, descriptive and quantitative study. The sample type was probabilistic by conglomerates in a single stage (schools). A total of 760 teachers were assessed in 35 different schools. For data collection, self-applicable questionnaires, as well as teachers' physical assessments were used, including anthropometric variables (weight, height, waist circumference, hip circumference) and body composition obtained by bioimpedance, following straightly the WHO patterns. Results: The variables waist circumference, conicity index and hip waist ratio had their values classified as normal among the majority of the assessed teachers, being only 13.7, 15.1 and 13.9% of them with high percentages of each variable respectively. However, it is noticed a high prevalence of excessive body fat (57% of them are overweight) and body mass index (BMI). According to these figures, the some of the values obtained for overweight and obesity are the majority in relation to the number of teachers with normal BMI (Overweight- 33.4, Obese-15.1). Conclusion: It was observed a high frequency of excess body fat assessed by different indicators of adiposity. When considering obesity as a risk factor for many diseases, it is important to educate teachers about the benefits of physical activity for health and for obesity prevention by creating strategies to encourage teachers to act in a preventive way with the practice of actions aimed at promoting health and disease prevention.