## 4 Discussion  
Adolescence is a critical period characterized by changes in body composition, morphological changes (e.g., increase in lean mass in boys and body fat in girls), hormonal changes, increased rhythm of growth, and a tendency toward independence and preoccupation with one's self-image [9]. The analysis of the nutritional status of the studied group showed that over 70% of adolescents were of normal weights (35.9% of boys and 35.22% of girls), 19.76% were underweight, and the rest (9.07%) were overweight or obese. The majority of the boys and girls had adequate weights. Comparatively, the results of other studies on adolescents from different parts of the world are mentioned in Table 4.  
In contrast to the results of a study conducted on Spanish adolescents, in which 20% of the participants were overweight and obese [13], we found differences between the sexes in the number of underweight and overweight participants in the study; more girls were underweight (26.87% versus 12.20%), but more boys were overweight (11.11% versus 3.96%). For a better assessment of the nutritional status of adolescents, we consider that it is necessary to determine not only the BMI but also the assessment of body fat composition. Only 70 adolescents (5.30%) of the studied group consumed 5-6 meals/day, with most (63.56%) consuming 3-4 meals/day. The number of boys having 5-6 meals/day was double that of girls (47 versus 23). In the study of [PERSON] et al., 52.20% of the adolescents included had 3 meals per day, and only 13% had more than 3 meals per day [14]. The results of the study by [PERSON] et al. showed that 91.40% of the 290 adolescents from Islamabad consumed a maximum of 3 meals/day, 6.20% consumed 4 meals/day, and 2.40% of them had over 5 meals/day [1]. The analysis of the relationship between the number of meals/day and the BMI value revealed that only 3 adolescents who had over 7 meals/day were overweight or obese, \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c} \hline \hline  & \multicolumn{4}{c}{**Nutritional Status**} & \\ \hline \multirow{2}{*}{**Study**} & **Number of** & **Normal Weight** & **Underweight** & **Overweight** & **Obese** \\  & **Adolescents** & **(\%)** & **(\%)** & **(\%)** & **(\%)** \\ \hline [PERSON] et al., 2011, Poland [10] & 307 & 74.55\% & 9.40\% & 13.75\% & 2.30\% \\ [PERSON] et al., 2016, Islamabad [1] & 290 & 60.70\% & 27.20\% & 9.30\% & 2.80\% \\ [PERSON] et al., 2018, Indonesia [11] & 400 & 57.20\% & 23.30 & 13.00\% & 6.50\% \\ [PERSON] et al., 2010, Nigeria [12] & 201 & 31.80\% & 46.80\% & 21.40\% & \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 4: Nutritional status of adolescents included in other studies. while 27 adolescents consuming only 1-2 meals/day were overweight or obese. This could be explained by the fact that, due to the school program, they consumed the largest amount of food in the evening. The risk factors for being overweight or obese are skipping meals, physical inactivity, regular consumption of fatty and sweet foods, and fast food [15]. The habit of skipping meals--a common phenomenon among adolescents--contributes to dietary inadequacy and increased body weight, as the foods commonly consumed and may even be replaced by unhealthy foods [16]. Breakfast provides 25% of the daily caloric intake. It is considered that the regular consumption of breakfast is associated with a lower BMI and a reduced risk of obesity. Breakfast is important as it provides energy, vitamins, and minerals. Regularly eating breakfast can reduce the consumption of snacks and energy-rich foods [17]. Meal skipping is common among adolescents, with breakfast being the most-skipped meal. The reasons why they do not have breakfast are the desire to sleep longer, the lack of time, and the start of the school program being at 7:00 a.m. For these reasons, they eat outside the home (e.g., vending machines, fast food restaurants, and food courts). Many of these types of foods are high in fat and low in nutrients and fibers.