The impact of nutrition and lifestyle habits on the health of undergraduate University

students.
S. Mbatha University of KwaZulu-Natal, Bertha Mkhize Road, Durban 4001,
219021871@stu.ukzn.ac.za
Nutrition and lifestyle habits on health is one of the major problems that threatens the health
of undergraduate University students. This investigation was performed to assess the food
consumption lifestyle habits of first year University students. The study was conducted by
students at University of KwaZulu-Natal, and the questionnaire was used to gather
information. The data was also obtained from questionnaire. The results indicate that many
students preferred carbohydrates(192), are normal in weight(49) and many students are
active(44) and very active(20). This result implies that many students are living a healthy
lifestyle that does not have a poor nutrition and lifestyle habits.

Introduction

Nutrition is the process of providing or obtaining the food necessary for health and growth
(Bourne et al., 2002). Good nutrition is an important part of leading a healthy lifestyle.
Combined with a physical activity, diet can help to reach and maintain a healthy weight,
reduce risk of chronic diseases (like heart disease and cancer) , and promote overall health.
Noncommunicable diseases (NCD’s) are diseases that are not transmissible directly from one
person to another e.g. Heart disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, etc (Bradshaw et al., 2003). Food
system present challenges to the prevention and control of NCD’s as well as undernutrition.
The African diet is based on whole , fresh plant foods like fruit and vegetables, tubers like
yams and sweet potatoes, rice and other grain foods ( Steyn at al., 2006).

Exercise is an activity requiring physical effort, carried out to sustain or improve health and
fitness (. Exercising increases energy levels, muscle strength, and can help maintain a healthy
weight. Exercising can improve health and reduces the risk of developing several diseases
like cancer and cardiovascular diseases. Body Mass Index (BMI) is an approximate measure
of whether someone is over- or underweight, calculated by dividing weight ( kg) by the
square of height (m) Esmat (2012). Underweight range is a BMI below 18.5, healthy weight
range is between 18.5 and 24.9, and overweight range is a BMI between 25 and 29.9 ( Flegal
et al., 1999). The purpose of this study was to assess the body weight status, physical activity
level and the lifestyle habits of undergraduate University students. The hypothesis for this
investigation states that University students have poor nutrition and lifestyle habits which
Impact on their health.
Method and Materials
The study was conducted at University of KwaZulu-Natal Westville campus, conducted by
first year students. It was conducted by 80 students. The questionnaire was used to gather
information on the nutrition and lifestyle habits of students with regards to their food and
drink choices. The double entry technique was used to analyse the data. The waist
circumference , height and weight parameters were used to calculate the Body Mass Index
(BMI). The equation: BMI= weight(kg)/[height(m)] was used to calculate Body Mass Index.
The data was collected using questionnaire. Self-questionnaire paper and-pencil questionnaire
was used to collect data. The double entry technique was used to analyse the data.

Results

250
Average total daily intake(g)

200

150

100

50

0
Carbohydrates Fruits & Vegetables Sugar-sweetened Proteins Fats
s
beverages

Figure 1: Bar graph representing types of nutrition and average total daily intake in grams.

Table 1: Table showing weight status of 80 University students .

Weight status Number Percentage (%)

Normal weight 49 61%
Overweight 18 22.5%
obese 7 9%
underweight 6 7.5%
Figure 2:Pie chart showing physical activities of 80 students in %

Sedentary
5%
Low active
15%

Active
55%
Very active
25%

Active Very active Low active Sedentary

Discussion

The purpose of this explorative study was to assess the food consumption lifestyle habits of
first year University students. The results in Figure 1 indicate that most students preferred
carbohydrates(44%) followed by fruits and vegetable(18%). Students preferred carbohydrates
mostly because carbohydrates are affordable, provide energy and they are available in the
market (Steyn et al.2006). Carbohydrates is a preferable fuel source, simply because in theory
fats takes longer to convert into usable energy than carbohydrates (Beaglehole et al.,
2004).(This links to the study of study of nutrition status of undergraduate’s healthcare
students at University of Free States where many students preferred carbohydrates over fats).
Some students preferred proteins(13%) and Sugar-sweetened beverages(14%).Less students
preferred fats (11%) because eating too much fats increases risk for heart diseases and
stroke. Too much fats raises cholesterol levels in blood Bradshaw (2003).

The results in figure 2 shows the weight of undergraduate student. Most students are normal
in weight (61%) and less students are underweight (7.5%). Many students are normal weight
mostly because students like to keep a healthy snack, drink a lot of water and live a healthy
lifestyle (World Health Organisation, 2011). Academic pressure from university settings and
time limits prevents students from regular meals consumption, leading to unintentional
weight loss. Results in figure 3 indicate that many undergraduate students are active (55%)
and very active (25). Most students were active and very active mostly because attending
dance classes and playing different sports lead to healthy lifestyle. Eating health food also
leads to activeness. Less students were sedentary ( 5) and other students were low active
(15%). [ This result also relates to the study of nutrition status of undergraduate healthcare
students at University of Free States where many students were active and very active, less
students were low active, and no student was sedentary Van den Berg et al.(2013)]. The
hypothesis was rejected.

Conclusion

The results indicate that many students are normal in weight, active and prefer carbohydrates.
The hypothesis was rejected. For this reason, it is clear that many University students are
living a healthy lifestyle. The is a relationship between the aim of the investigation and the
data. The aim of the investigation was to access the food consumption lifestyle and habits of
the first year University students.
References

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