Nutritional habits and heart health of university students

Abstract

This study was performed to determine nutritional habits of the university students and to evaluate the nutritional habits according to the heart health. The research was performed in a cross-sectional and descriptive study between the students studying a university in Turkey between February 2015 -May 2015. A questionnaire was used a total of 32 questions for data collection. 602 voluntary students participated in the study. 69.3% of the students whose average of age were 20.04±1.87 were female students and 63% of them were studying at the Faculty of Health Sciences. It was stated that breakfast was the most skipped meal and males had breakfast more than the female students (p=.001). Females consumed foods containing additives more than males (p<.05). Males consumed omega-3 more than the females (p=.019). It was stated that females drank more milk than the males in the breakfast (p=.044). Most of the male students added salt before tasting the foods (p=.001). Males drank more water than the females (p=.003). It was detected that most of the females preferred whole wheat bread while most of the males preferred white bread in the meals (p=.001). It was found that the students consumed more the foods containing additives, consumed vegetable, fruit and fish little, added salt before tasting the foods and did not have breakfast regularly. According to these results, it was found that the nutritional habits of university students were not good according to the heart health.