624
Views
50
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Article

Nutritive value of meals, dietary habits and nutritive status in Croatian university students according to gender

, &
Pages 473-484 | Published online: 06 Jul 2009
 

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate daily menus at students’ restaurants and to report dietary habits and other health-related behaviour of Croatian university students (n=2075) according to gender. A specially designed self- administered questionnaire was used. One hundred and twenty daily menus were chosen by random sampling, and the nutritive value was calculated using food composition tables. Daily menus on average provide an adequate amount of energy, protein and most micro nutrients: 88.2% of daily menus provide a balanced intake of protein, fat and carbohydrates, 22.5% of daily menus provide more than 300 mg of cholesterol, and 58.8% have more than 25 g dietary fibre. On average, students had 2.4 meals and 1.3 snacks per day. Breakfast was the most often skipped meal. Red meat, cereals and fast food were consumed more often by males (P<0.05). Low-fat dairy products, whole grain products and breakfast cereals were consumed more often by females (P<0.05). The most common choice for snacks was fruit. Males exercised more than females (4.4 h/week versus 1.6 h/week; P<0.05). A higher percentage of females (29.8%) than males (17.2%) smoked cigarettes. For alcohol consumption it was vice versa: 88.9 and 84.8% of males and females, respectively. A total of 80.4% of students were well nourished. This study showed that meals offered at students’ restaurants are adequate. Dietary and other health-related behaviour differed according to gender. Clustering of some behaviours was observed.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.