Abstract
IntroductionThe burden of diseases associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviours continues to increase in the low- and middle-income countries including South Africa. Among the affected population are the health professionals who are assumed to be knowledgeable about healthy eating.AimThis study aimed to determine the dietary habits of health professionals in a public district hospital in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2012 among 109 randomly selected health professionals. Each received a questionnaire consisting of mostly closed and few open-ended questions. Its main focus was the dietary and eating habits of the professionals. An ethical clearance was granted by the Medunsa Research and Ethics committee at the University of Limpopo. Permission to conduct the study was sought and obtained from participants as well. Descriptive statistics and frequencies were used to analyse data.ResultsA 100% (109) response rate was achieved. The majority skipped meals especially breakfast with a significant positive correlation between breakfast intake per week and age (r = 0.98, p = 0.048). The majority consumed a lot of unhealthy foods and carbonated beverages with sugar. Consumption of fruits, vegetables, high fibre and whole grain foods was less common.ConclusionThe study showed poor eating habits among participants. Urgent health interventions are therefore indicated to highlight the importance of healthy eating habits among the entire population.
Highlights
The burden of diseases associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviours continues to increase in the low- and middle-income countries including South Africa
The results of this study showed that the majority of health professionals do not adhere to healthy eating habits
It is interesting to note that the same population presented with low levels of physical activity according to Kunene and Taukobong in 20155 as indicated in the introduction
Summary
The burden of diseases associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviours continues to increase in the low- and middle-income countries including South Africa. The citizens of many African countries including South Africa have poor nutritional status, in terms of energy micronutrient intake.[2] Among the South African population, there is a complex mix of overnutrition and undernutrition, among women.[3] the absence of appropriate food, lack of advice on healthy eating habits or cultural food preferences is reportedly increasing the incidence of obesity especially among Black women. The consequence in turn contributes to the growing burden of disease related to lifestyles
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