Perceived stress and eating behavior among professional and nonprofessional undergraduate students in Udupi District, Karnataka.

Abstract

Stress is an unavoidable part of our life. Certain amount of stress is needed for our survival. Stress is one of the factors, which affects the health and eating habits of a person. The aim of the study was to compare the perceived stress among professional and nonprofessional undergraduate students and to find out the relationship between eating behavior and perceived stress of undergraduate students. A comparative descriptive study was conducted from November 2017 to April 2018, among 400 undergraduate students from selected professional and nonprofessional colleges in Udupi District, Karnataka. Students were recruited using proportionate sampling technique. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire after obtaining informed consent of the study participants. Statistically significant difference was found in perceived stress of professional and nonprofessional students (Z = -2.397, P = 0.017). There was a weak positive correlation between perceived stress and uncontrolled eating of professional students (ρ= 0.162, P = 0.022) and nonprofessional students (ρ= 0.183, P = 0.009). There was no association found between perceived stress and selected demographic variables such as age, gender, study course, year of study, type of family, and occupation of parents (P > 0.05). Perceived stress of professional students is more compared to nonprofessional students. Uncontrolled eating behavior is influenced by increase in stress, and perceived stress is independent of demographic variables.