NUTRITION KNOWLEDGE AND OBESITY OF ADULTS IN COMMUNITY RESIDENCES

Variation in nutrition knowledge of adults with mild or moderate menta l retardation (30 obese, 27 nonobese) from four community agencies was examined as a function of their body mass and level of mental retarda tion, They completed a nutrition knowledge test adapted for individual s with mental retardation. Multiple regression analyses revealed signi ficant effects of lever of mental retardation and body mass on nutriti on knowledge. Adults with mild mental retardation possessed greater nu trition knowledge than did those with moderate mental retardation, and obese individuals possessed more knowledge than did nonobese individu als. The unexpected relation between nutrition knowledge and degree of obesity implies an influential role for environmental factors in the development of obesity.