Why don’t college freshmen meet the US dietary guidelines for added sugar, refined grains, sodium, and saturated fat?

Abstract

Objective

The objective of the study was to evaluate how well college students meet U.S. dietary guidelines by examining the mean intakes of nutrients to limit (sodium, sugar, refined grains, and saturated fat), and what factors lead to exceeding the dietary recommendations.

Participants

Participants were first-year undergraduate students (N = 269).

Methods

Diet was assessed using a DHQ-III and estimated with food source composition tables. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to model variables associated with exceeding the recommendations. One-sample t-tests were performed to compare the cohort with national intakes.

Results

One-third met added sugar guidelines; only 4% met daily refined grains requirements, Fewer than half met saturated fat guidelines, and slightly over half met recommended sodium guidelines. Level of physical activity, race/ethnicity, and living on campus were the important predictors for exceeding recommended intakes.

Conclusions

Most students do not adhere to the U.S. dietary guidelines for nutrients to limit.

Keywords:

• Added sugar
• DHQ
• dietary guidelines
• refined grains
• Saturated fat
• sodium

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States of America and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of George Mason University.

Funding

Internal funding from the Institute for Biohealth Innovation at George Mason University was used to support this research.