The Influence of Nutrition Education on the Dietary Intake and Percent Ideal Body Weight of College Students

Abstract

Sixty-one students, enrolled in an introductory nutrition course maintained a two-day food record at the start and then again at the end of a semester. Change in nutrient intake for each student was calculated using the NutriQuest diet analysis program. As explanatory variables, student data was also collected on age. gender, height (self-reported), weight (self-reported), self perceived assessment of own diet at start of course, weekly dollars spent on food, and place of residence. The grade that the student received in the course was also recorded. Using change in nutrient intake, change in weight, and progress towards ideal body weight as dependent variables, multiple regression analysis was used to determine if grade received in the course (holding all other explanatory variables constant) significantly influenced the different dependent variables. Of most interest is the significant finding (p < 0.03) that a one-unit increase in grade received in the course (i.e., from a 3.0 to a 4.0), holding other explanatory variables constant, resulted in 1.5 percent improvement towards ideal body weight. Other significant findings (p < 0.10) related to student achievement was that among identical students in respect to the other explanatory variables, the ones who received higher grades increased their intake of iron and decreased their intake of vitamin C and calcium. Grade had no other significant effects on the other dependent variables considered. These results provide evidence that students with a stronger mastery of the nutritional knowledge provided in a college introductory course are more likely to move toward their ideal body weight in the short duration of a semester. Further improvements towards ideal body weight after the semester ended were not measured, but may be more likely for students who did better in the course. Though with the exception of iron consumption, there is little evidence that performance in such an introductory course exerts an influence on nutrient intake.