This study aimed to investigate the nutrition literacy status of Taiwanese college students and to assess the relationship between nutrition literacy and healthy-eating behaviours.
Design:
Cross-sectional design with convenience sampling.
Setting:
Six universities in northern, central and southern Taiwan; both national and private universities were included in each region.
Method:
A maximum of 220 students was recruited from each university with no more than 45 students from one department. Data were collected using a self-rated nutrition literacy scale and questions about frequency of practising healthy-eating behaviours and demographic information.
Results:
The mean score for self-rated nutrition literacy was 2.8 (out of 4), and the mean score for healthy-eating behaviours was 3.07 (out of 5). Results of hierarchical regression showed that nutrition literacy explained 17.2% of the total variance of healthy-eating behaviours of college students, controlling for confounding variables.
Conclusion:
The findings of this study showed that nutrition literacy among college students was not optimal, and there was a positive association between higher levels of nutrition literacy and healthier dietary behaviours. Therefore, identifying methods to increase nutrition literacy among college students is essential to promote healthy-eating behaviours.
AiharaYMinaiJ (2011) Barriers and catalysts of nutrition literacy among elderly Japanese people. Health Promotional International26: 421–431.
2.
AlkerwiASauvageotNMalanL, et al. (2015) Association between nutritional awareness and diet quality: Evidence from the observation of cardiovascular risk factors in Luxembourg (ORISCAV-LUX) study. Nutrients7: 2823–2838.
3.
AndingJDSuminskiRRBossL (2001) Dietary intake, body mass index, exercise, and alcohol: Are college women following the dietary guidelines for Americans?Journal of American College Health49: 167–171.
4.
BhutaniSSchoellerDAWalshMC, et al. (2018) Frequency of eating out at both fast-food and sit-down restaurants was associated with high body mass index in non-large metropolitan communities in Midwest. American Journal of Health Promotion32: 75–83.
5.
CarboneETZoellnerJM (2012) Nutrition and health literacy: A systematic review to inform nutrition research and practice. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics112: 254–265.
6.
ChaESKimKHLernerHM, et al. (2014) Health literacy, self-efficacy, food label use, and diet in young adults. American Journal of Health Behavior38: 331–339.
7.
ChepulisLMMearnsGJ (2015) Evaluation of the nutritional knowledge of undergraduate nursing students. Journal of Nursing Education54: S103–S106.
8.
CliffordDAndersonJAuldG, et al. (2009) Good Grubbin’: Impact of a TV cooking show for college students living off campus. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior41: 194–200.
9.
DawsonKASchneiderMAFletcherPC, et al. (2007) Examining gender differences in the health behaviors of Canadian university students. Journal of the Royal Society for the Promotion of Health127: 38–44.
10.
DeliensTClarysPDe BourdeaudhuijI, et al. (2014) Determinants of eating behaviour in university students: A qualitative study using focus group discussions. BMC Public Health14: 1–12.
11.
DeSalvoKBOlsonRCasavaleKO (2016) Dietary guidelines for Americans. Journal of the American Medical Association315: 457–458.
12.
DiamondJJ (2007) Development of a reliable and construct valid measure of nutritional literacy in adults. Nutrition Journal6: 5.
13.
FedewaMVDasBMEvansEM, et al. (2014) Change in weight and adiposity in college students: A systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Preventive Medicine47: 641–652.
14.
FrankoDLCousineauTMTrantM, et al. (2008) Motivation, self-efficacy, physical activity and nutrition in college students: Randomized controlled trial of an internet-based education program. Preventive Medicine47: 369–377.
15.
GibbsHChapman-NovakofskiK (2012a) Exploring nutrition literacy: Attention to assessment and the skills clients need. Health4: 120.
16.
GibbsHChapman-NovakofskiK (2012b) A review of health literacy and its relationship to nutrition education. Topics in Clinical Nutrition27: 325–333.
17.
GibbsHEllerbeckEFBefortC, et al. (2015) Measuring nutrition literacy in breast cancer patients: Development of a novel instrument. Journal of Cancer Education31: 493–499.
18.
GonzalesK (2013) The impact of residence on dietary intake, food insecurity, and eating behavior among university undergraduate students. Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado3: 8.
19.
HaE-JCaine-BishN (2009) Effect of nutrition intervention using a general nutrition course for promoting fruit and vegetable consumption among college students. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior41: 103–109.
KabirAMiahSIslamA (2018) Factors influencing eating behavior and dietary intake among resident students in a public university in Bangladesh: A qualitative study. PLoS ONE13: e0198801.
23.
KolodinskyJHarvey-BerinoJRBerlinL, et al. (2007) Knowledge of current dietary guidelines and food choice by college students: Better eaters have higher knowledge of dietary guidance. Journal of the American Dietetic Association107: 1409–1413.
24.
KonidariZKastoriniCMMilionisHJ, et al. (2014) Eating behaviors and their relationship with cardiovascular disease. A case/case-control study. Appetite80: 89–95.
25.
KornLGonenEShakedY, et al. (2013) Health perceptions, self and body image, physical activity and nutrition among undergraduate students in Israel. PLoS ONE8: e58543.
26.
LaCailleLJDaunerKNKrambeerRJ, et al. (2011) Psychosocial and environmental determinants of eating behaviors, physical activity, and weight change among college students: A qualitative analysis. Journal of American College Health59: 531–538.
27.
LarsonNStoryMl (2009) A review of environmental influences on food choices. Annals of Behavioral Medicine38: S56–73.
28.
LelongHGalanPKesse-GuyotE, et al. (2015) Relationship between nutrition and blood pressure: A cross-sectional analysis from the NutriNet-Santé Study, a French web-based cohort study. American Journal of Hypertension28: 362–371.
29.
LinWHangJ-MWangR-L, et al. (2011) Investigation of dietary environment of universities and eating patterns of college students. Report, Chinese Culture University, Taipei, Taiwan, pp. 1–205.
30.
LynnMR (1986) Determination and quantification of content validity. Nursing Research35: 382–385.
31.
MearnsGJChepulisLBritnellS, et al. (2017) Health and nutritional literacy of New Zealand nursing students. Journal of Nursing Education56: 43–48.
32.
NanneyMSLytleLAFarbakhshK, et al. (2015) Weight and weight-related behaviors among 2-year college students. Journal of American College Health63: 221–229.
NelsonTFGortmakerSLSubramanianSV, et al. (2007) Disparities in overweight and obesity among US college students. American Journal of Health Behavior31: 363–373.
35.
Nielsen-BohlmanLPanzerAKindigD (2004) Health Literacy: A Prescription to End Confusion (Committee on Health Literacy; Board on Neuroscience and Behavioral Health). Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
36.
PengpidSPeltzerK (2014) Prevalence of overweight/obesity and central obesity and its associated factors among a sample of university students in India. Obesity Research & Clinical Practice8: e558–e570.
37.
PoortingaW (2007) The prevalence and clustering of four major lifestyle risk factors in an English adult population. Preventive Medicine44: 124–128.
38.
RacetteSBDeusingerSSStrubeMJ, et al. (2005) Weight changes, exercise, and dietary patterns during freshman and sophomore years of college. Journal of American College Health53: 245–251.
39.
RasmussenMKrølnerRKleppK-I, et al. (2006) Determinants of fruit and vegetable consumption among children and adolescents: A review of the literature. Part I: Quantitative studies. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity3: 22.
40.
RennisLMcNamaraGSeidelE, et al. (2015) Google it!: Urban community college students’ use of the internet to obtain self-care and personal health information. College Student Journal49: 414–426.
41.
SchroderHSchmelzEMarrugatJ (2002) Relationship between diet and blood pressure in a representative Mediterranean population. European Journal of Nutrition41: 161–167.
42.
SenkowskiVBranscumP (2015) How college students search the internet for weight control and weight management information: An observational study. American Journal of Health Education46: 231–240.
43.
SilkKJSherryJWinnB, et al. (2008) Increasing nutrition literacy: Testing the effectiveness of print, web site, and game modalities. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior40: 3–10.
44.
SnyderLB (2007) Health communication campaigns and their impact on behavior. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior39: S32–S40.
45.
VaitkeviciuteRBallLEHarrisN (2015) The relationship between food literacy and dietary intake in adolescents: A systematic review. Public Health Nutrition18: 649–658.
46.
Von WagnerCKnightKSteptoeA, et al. (2007) Functional health literacy and health-promoting behaviour in a national sample of British adults. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health61: 1086–1090.
47.
WeissBDMaysMZMartzW, et al. (2005) Quick assessment of literacy in primary care: The newest vital sign. Annals of Family Medicine3: 514–522.
48.
YouJSChinJHKimMJ, et al. (2008) College students’ dietary behavior, health-related lifestyles and nutrient intake status by physical activity levels using international physical activity questionnaire (IPAQ) in Incheon area. Korean Journal of Nutrition41: 818–831.
49.
ZoellnerJConnellCBoundsW, et al. (2009) Nutrition literacy status and preferred nutrition communication channels among adults in the lower Mississippi Delta. Preventing Chronic Disease6: 1–11.
50.
ZoellnerJYouWConnellC, et al. (2011) Health literacy is associated with healthy eating index scores and sugar-sweetened beverage intake: Findings from the rural Lower Mississippi Delta. Journal of the American Dietetic Association111: 1012–1020.
