A STUDY OF THE STATE OF KNOWING THE NUTRITIONAL LITERACY CONCEPT IN TURKEY

Abstract

INTRODUCTION:Diet and are important factors in the promotion and maintenance of good health (WHO, 2002). Their role as determinants of chronic noncommunicable disease (obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) and stroke) is well established (WHO, 2015). Turkey faces two kinds of nutrition-related problems, undernutrition and micronutrient deficiencies on the one hand and diet -related chronic diseases on the other hand.In general, malnutrition is more prevalent in rural areas, while obesity and cardiovascular diseases are more prevalent in urban areas (Pekcan, 2009).The most important parameters influencing food consumption patterns in Turkey are income level and lack of knowledge (Pekcan & Karaagaoglu, 2000; FAO, 2001). In the studies investigating the nutritional habits and status of university students in Turkey, it was reported that undernutrition, malnutrition and eating disorders problems are caused by reasons such as separation from family for university education, living in dorms, economic status, and lack of knowledge on adequate nutrition; in addition, students do not pay attention to consume regular meal time and eating pattern, and skips meals especially the breakfast with fast-food (Sanlier et al. 2008; Gulec et al. 2008; Ozdogan et al. 2010; Yardimci et al. 2012; Ozkok, 2015).The college years are the period of significant changes in the lifestyles of young adults. Food patterns established during college ar e likely to be maintained for the rest of life and may have long -lasting influences on future health (Brown et al. 2005).It is well documented that college students have unhealthy eating behaviors, including skipping meals, (Huang et al. 1994) frequent snacking on energy-dense food, (Nuru & Mamang, 2015) and engaging in unhealthy weight-loss methods (Story et al. 1998; Liebman et al. 2001).Many factors can contribute to understanding of and healthy eating habits (Boehl, 2007).Economic and household tasks related to food production, processing, provisioning (meal planning, shopping, etc.), cooking and consumption are becoming increasingly complex and are linked to literacy and language proficiency (Arrom, 2011). The term nutrition literacy' has emerged as a distinct form of health literacy, yet scholars continue to reflect on constituent skills and capabilities in light of discussions regarding what it means to be food literate and health literate (Velardo, 2015). Food and literacy term is defined as taking into account, different aspects like social, health, sustainability, food systems, knowledge, skill, attitude, food choice and food consumption by previous researchers. These definitions are used for food literacy or literacy in many studies (Cimbaro, 2008; Zoellner et al. 2009; Vidgen & Gallegos, 2014). Several authors conceptualize literacy as a specific health literacy domain that reflects the ability to access, interpret, and use information (Silk et al. 2008; Carbone & Zoellner, 2012; Watson et al. 2012). Similarly, tohealth literacy, literacy can be defined as the degree of individuals where they can obtain, process, and understand the basic health (nutrition) information and services they need to make appropriate health (nutrition) decisions (IOM, 2004).Nutrition literacy is about using language for creating, understanding and knowledge about food systems. Ecological relationship with biological, social and environmental systems and introducing this understanding and knowledge to individuals and communities (Cimbaro, 2008). Increasing the population's food literacy will allow and empower people to engage in society and influence their local food systems. Food literacy and health literacy can work in conjunction to enable individuals to take ownership over their health and well-being (Cullen et al. 2015).There are many studies implemented in Turkey about the eating habits and knowledge level of university students. …