Evaluation of food insecurity and its association with food consumption and some variables among college students

Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition

Research

Caner Ozyildirim¹  Merve Seyda Karacil Ermumcu¹  Özge Mengi Celik² 

[1] Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey;Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Health Sciences, Ankara, Turkey;

关键词: Food insecurity;    Food security;    Food consumption frequency;    Undergraduate students;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s41043-023-00436-9

 received in 2023-06-02, accepted in 2023-08-25,  发布年份 2023

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundStudents are an important group threatened by food insecurity. Food insecurity among college students is one of the research topics that is attracting attention worldwide, and interest in this topic is growing by the day. Food insecurity has a negative impact on students' biological, mental and social health. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of food insecurity and correlate it with frequency of food consumption and some variables among undergraduate students.MethodsThis descriptive-analytical study was conducted with 1149 university students at Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey. The demographic characteristics of the individuals (gender, age, living situation, income status, and health information), anthropometric measurements (body weight and height), nutritional habits, frequency of food consumption, and Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) were questioned. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used for statistical analyses.ResultsIt was found that 13.1% of the students have mild, 13.0% moderate, and 9.4% severe food insecurity. The rate of individuals with and without food security differs according to gender, living situation, and income status (p < 0.05). There was a statistically significant correlations between the food insecurity score and age (p = 0.047), the number of main meals (p < 0.001) and snacks (0.007), and consumption frequency of certain foods (p < 0.05).ConclusionsThe prevalance of students facing food insecurity was high. Individuals with food insecurity have a lower frequency of healthy food consumption than individuals with food security. Steps should be taken to ensure nutritional security among undergraduate students, who are the young adult population.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© BioMed Central Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2023

【 图 表 】

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