Objective: To investigate the relationship between stress and eating patterns in pre-adolescents.

Methodology: Food and health habits of preadolescents aged 10 to 12 were studied in six schools across Kanpur.

Results: The study found that dietary habits do alter nutritional status. The statistically significant level was taken at p > 0.05. The study confirmed that childhood and adolescent diets had short- and long-term health effects. Adolescents should eat properly to improve both their mental and physical health. This study found a substantial relationship between pre-adolescent eating habits and fatty food preferences. Pre-adolescents who ate more fatty foods were shown to be more stressed, and this was at a 5% level of significance. In terms of reported stress, food intake, and healthy eating among pre-adolescents, girls were more stressed than boys. Preadolescents perceived stress was shown to be significant at 5%, but gender differences in sweets, cookies, and snack consumption were found to be significant at 5%.

Conclusion: The study proved that pre-adolescent diets had short- and long-term effects on health. To improve both their mental and physical health, adolescents should practise better dietary patterns.