**1. Introduction**

A multitude and variability of factors influencing food consumption necessitate their monitoring as significant for human nutritional status. Nutritional status is a component of a health condition resulting from the habitual consumption of food, the absorption and use of its nutrients, and possible pathological factors that affect these processes [1]. The purpose of nutritional status assessment is to identify people who exhibit malnourished nutritional disorders or are overweight and obese. Overweight and obesity are common health problems in 21st century societies. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in developed countries, including Poland, has steadily increased and has been one of the

**Citation:** Lepionka, T.; Anyzewska, ˙ A.; Maculewicz, E.; Klos, K.; Lakomy, R.; Szarska, E.; Tomczak, A.; Ga ´zdzi ´nska, A.; Skuza, K.; Bertrandt, J. Assessment of the Body Composition and Bone Calcification of Students of Police Schools and Police Training Centers in Poland—A Cross-Sectional Study. *IJERPH* **2022**, *19*, 7161. https://doi.org/10.3390/ ijerph19127161

Academic Editor: Paul B. Tchounwou

Received: 20 April 2022 Accepted: 9 June 2022 Published: 10 June 2022

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**Copyright:** © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/).

most common lifestyle-related health problems [2,3]. Globally, it is estimated that 44% of adults and 20% of children over five are overweight or obese. Moreover, since 1975, the number of overweight and obese people has tripled and now accounts for 4 million deaths worldwide each year, of which nearly 2/3 are due to cardiovascular disease [4]. Currently, obesity is perceived as aesthetically problematic and, primarily, as a severe medical issue and pathophysiological disorder caused by a superabundant accumulation of adipose tissue [5]. Excessive fat accumulation leads to negative consequences for the quality of life and wellbeing, life expectancy and treatment costs [6,7], and an increased incidence of chronic non-communicable diseases [8].

One of the methods of body weight monitoring is the use of body mass index—BMI— which is the quotient of body weight (measured in kilograms) and the square of the height (in meters). It is widely used in public health and clinical nutrition to quickly evaluate nutritional wellbeing, as excessive BMI is associated with increased risks of mortality, cardiovascular disease, and some cancers. According to the standards adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO), overweight is diagnosed when the BMI value is 25 or more, and obesity is diagnosed when the value of this index is 30 or more [9]. Although BMI has a significant limitation in the discrimination between adipose tissue and muscle mass, it is included in several widely used nutritional screening tools [10].

The complexity of external and innate factors influencing nutritional status is evident. The direct cause of overweight and obesity associated with the accumulation of adipose tissue is an imbalance in energy management, caused by an excessive intake of calories from food and drinks. It is favored by other factors, i.e., an inactive lifestyle, the popularity of food products with high sugar content, new technologies reducing physical effort, environmental and genetic factors, and family habits. However, it can be concluded that nutritional status results from the applied nutrition model and physical load. The nutritional status assessment indicates whether the physiological needs of the subject in relation to the nutrient requirements are met. Numerous observations of the relationship between anthropometric measurements and nutrition have shown that such values as height and weight or body fat content are reliable indicators of nutritional status. In turn, the proper nutritional status indicates that the demand for other nutrients is sufficiently covered. Moreover, the assessment of the nutritional status allows the determination of the current state of health and is a factor in forecasting the possible development of several metabolic diseases that are directly or indirectly related to nutrition.

Research conducted in the last decade shows that obesity and the ignorance of soldiers and police officers about a healthy lifestyle are severe problems for uniformed services. It should be emphasized that these are professional groups on which the state's security depends. Our previous study conducted on 479 police officers showed the presence of excessive body weight resulting from abdominal obesity in over 50% of male police officers [11]. A similar study conducted on 7000 Polish soldiers showed that cardiovascular diseases among military personnel pose a more significant threat in this group than among civilians. The prevalence of obesity and related diseases—hypertension, high cholesterol or prediabetes, and smoking—was alarming [12]. The authors emphasized the irrational nutrition model and the urgen<sup>t</sup> need for nutritional education and prevention of civilizationrelated metabolic diseases among uniformed services. As a consequence of these studies, the National Health Program was conducted in 2016–2020, which included implementing overweight and obesity reduction programs and a comprehensive study of the diet of uniformed services employees.

In light of the above studies, assessing the components of nutritional status seems to be essential both from a health and national security perspective. The aim of the research study was to assess the frequency of abnormalities in the body composition and bone mineralization among officers of uniformed services. Based on previous research, we assumed that we would identify the irregularities mentioned earlier in a significant group of respondents, and as a consequence, individual conversations and training on the importance of leading a healthy lifestyle would be conducted. In this paper, we

present the results of the studies realized as a part of the National Health Program concerning candidates and police officers studying and serving in police schools and police training centers.

#### **2. Materials and Methods**
