An investigation in the quality of diet and adequacy of energy and macronutrient intake amongst male and female university students

Abstract

Previous studies have indicated university students are often exposed to stress, lack of time and financial constraints, adversely influencing nutrient intake and status (1) . Excessive calorie intake, high dietary fat intake, alcohol and fast food consumption are commonly seen in this population, compromising an optimum nutritional status (2) .The purpose of this study was to investigate quality of diet and the adequacy of energy and macronutrient intake in university students by comparing their current nutrient intake to Dietary Reference Values (DRVs).After obtaining ethical approval, participants (n 234) aged 18-24 from North West Universities were recruited in a cross-sectional study. Laboratory and anthropometric measures of nutritional status such as glucose and lipid profiles, weight, height, percentage body fat and BMI were assessed. Energy and macronutrient intake was measured using a validated 3-day diet diary and analysed using dietary assessment software Microdiet. The percentage contribution of nutrients to total energy was compared with the DRVs (3)(4)(5) . Statistical analysis including one-sample T-test, chi square test and independent samples T-test was conducted using SPSS 22 and statistical significance was set at 0·05.The average daily macronutrients intake of participants was often higher in males in comparison with females; however when macronutrient intakes were expressed in relation with energy intake and in comparison to DRVs, females had a significantly higher intake of fat, Saturated Fatty Acids (SFA), Poly Unsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFA), Mono Unsaturated Fatty Acids (MUFA), free sugar and protein; while total carbohydrate intake was lower than the DRVs. For males, total fat intake was not statistically above DRVs, however consumption of SFA, PUFA, MUFA, free sugar and protein were all higher compared to DRVs; while, carbohydrate intake was also lower than the DRVs. When energy requirement was calculated according to the latest DRVs for energy for all individuals (5) , 76·8 % of females and 78·0 % of males met their daily energy requirement and there was no variation in meeting the requirements (P > 0·05).Although higher contribution of protein to total energy intake of male participants can explain part of the gender differences, the excessive intake of free sugar, total fat and SFA especially amongst females warrants further investigation. In contrast to previous studies demonstrating females often consume a better quality of diet (1) , this study has highlighted that this is not always the case.

Anthropometric Indicators of Adiposity Related to Body Weight and Body Shape as Cardiometabolic Risk Predictors in British Young Adults: Superiority of Waist-to-Height Ratio

“…These poor dietary habits have been associated with the transition to independence, stress, academic and peer pressure, and taking responsibility for food choice when starting to study at university [ 3 – 5 ]. Several studies have reported that university students fail to meet the dietary guidelines [ 6 – 8 ] and gain weight in the university years [ 9 – 12 ], which can have adverse health consequences leading to an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases in later life [ 13 , 14 ]. The existence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in young adults can be a predictor of these chronic conditions in older adults [ 15 , 16 ].…”

Dietetic Students’ Drivers and Barriers to Healthy Eating While Studying to Be a Healthcare Professional (a Pilot Study)

“…There are a few strengths for this study. First of all, with regard to originality and contribution to the body of knowledge, while there are several previous studies examining nutrition (e.g., [ 8 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ]) and health (e.g., [ 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 ]) of young adults, the majority of these studies use a quantitative approach to describe or quantify the issue, and a few well-conducted qualitative studies (e.g., [ 33 , 61 , 62 , 63 ]) are not focused on eating habits of the Dietetic students, as the future health care professionals. Our study explores the ‘how’ and ‘why’ questions of the eating behaviour of the Dietetic students using a qualitative approach to address the gap in our understanding in the food choice of the Dietetic students.…”

Evaluation of the Effect of Hedonic Hunger on Nutrition Change Processes and Its Relationship with BMI: A Study on University Students

“…Original Article the nutritional attitudes of university students found that increased consumption of processed foods high in sugar, energy, and fat and a decrease in fruit-vegetable and wholegrain consumption in this population (7,8). This change in nutritional patterns may result in the triggering of hedonic appetite and hedonic hunger mechanisms.…”