Satisfacción corporal y calidad de la dieta en estudiantes universitarias del País Vasco

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the body weight satisfaction and the diet quality in a group of female university students and to assess the differences between degrees in different fields of knowledge. Participants were 47 women volunteers classified as normal weight, 29 from the degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics and 18 from the degree in Social Work. Dietary intake was evaluated by a validated food frequency questionnaire. This information was used to estimate the Diet Quality Index. Recalled weight and desired weight were used to measure weight satisfaction. Furthermore, lifestyle variables were registered. Data were analyzed using SPSS vs 17.0. The proportion of students who were satisfied with their body weight was 27.7%, 57.4% were dissatisfied and 14.9% very dissatisfied. Differences between degree courses were not found in weight satisfaction classification. The mean Diet Quality Index was 38.5±6.7, and 83% of participants had a diet classified as “needs to improve”. Human Nutrition and Dietetics students had higher Diet Quality Index scores (41.5±5.1) than Social Work students (33.7±6.5) (p<0.001). In conclusion, a large proportion of participants were dissatisfied with their body weight and they wished to weigh less than current weight values. It seems that the knowledge of Nutrition university student participants affects their food practice, but this is not enough to achieve a healthy diet and to reduce their body dissatisfaction.