Interrelationships among nutrition knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and body satisfaction

Abstract

PurposeLittle is known about interrelationships among nutrition knowledge, attitude, dietary intake, and body satisfaction, which are important variables that play a role in nutrition education interventions. This paper aims to focus on these interrelationships.Design/methodology/approachStudents (n=279; 20.12±1.75SD years) enrolled at a large northeastern US university took an online survey. The survey contained a nutrition knowledge scale, attitude scale, food frequency scales, body areas satisfaction subscale, and demographic characteristics questions. To determine relationships, correlation coefficients were computed, along with forward stepwise regression to identify predictors of each study measure.Research limitations/implicationsData were collected from a non‐probability sample in one geographical area at one time point.FindingsIn males, significant positive correlations were found between fruit/vegetable servings and attitudes, knowledge, body satisfaction; and between knowledge and attitudes. Stepwise multiple regression analysis found fruit/vegetable servings and percent calories from fat significantly predicted attitudes, while in females attitude was a significant predictor variable for knowledge, fruit/vegetable servings, and percent of calories from fat. Among females, significant positive correlations occurred between attitudes and knowledge, and fruit/vegetable servings and attitudes.Practical implicationsNutrition and health interventions should incorporate lessons that work to improve one's attitudes toward nutrition. Interventions targeted to males should aim to increase nutrition knowledge, while interventions targeted to females should focus on nutrition knowledge and attitudes.Originality/valueThis paper expands on what is known about young adults and key cognitive factors that influence their nutrition knowledge, attitudes, dietary intake, and body satisfaction. Nutrition educators can utilize the study findings to inform future nutrition interventions.

Effect Of Gender And Lifestyle Behaviors On BMI Trends In A Sample Of The First State’s Undergraduate Population

“…On-campus students rely on the Wesley College cafeteria which has a buffet-style arrangement. Hence, the greater than normal BMI for students living on-campus affirms prior associations (Wansink and Payne, 2008; Dissen et al, 2011) exhibited by buffet patrons.…”

“…National concern about obesity on campus (Sparling, 2007) has identified probable causes to include campus culture (Cash and Green, 1986; Betz et al, 1994; Brener and Gowda, 2001; Costin, 2013), diet and exercise (Haberman and Luffey, 1998), gender (Hoerr et al, 2002), college standing (Driskel, Kim, and Goebel, 2005), demographics (James and Bonds, 2006; Sira and Pawlak, 2010; Wang and Beydoun, 2007), stress (Torres and Nowson, 2007), living arrangements (Brunt and Rhee, 2008), and student nutritional knowledge and attitudes (Wansink and Payne, 2008; Dissen et al, 2011). Although behavior, environment, and family history (Ellis and Haman, 2004) do play a role in obesity, studies consistently show that consuming too many calories and not getting enough physical activity is still the main leading cause of obesity in the US population (US Dept.…”

Is a Nutrition Education Intervention Associated with a Higher Intake of Fruit and Vegetables and Improved Nutritional Knowledge among Housewives in Mauritius?

“…Likewise, Kostanjevec et al [56] observed a significant improvement in nutrition knowledge, however, only participants scoring low at baseline made the most improvement while those scoring best at baseline did not improve significantly. Dissen et al [9] also reported that nutrition interventions should aim at increasing nutrition knowledge as higher nutrition knowledge levels may lead to more positive changes and promote healthier dietary habits. There are contradictory results where knowledge scores did not increase significantly from pre-test to post-test [57] which may be due to differences in the exposure to nutrition information, family environment, and food availability and accessibility [58].…”

“…Dietary behaviors are affected by many factors including nutrition knowledge. For example, individuals who have been taught about the health benefits of eating larger quantities of fruits and vegetables are more likely to consume these foods than those who were not taught [9]. Attitudes toward nutrition and health also affect dietary behavior.…”

The Importance of Different Knowledge Types in Health-Related Decisions—The Example of Type 2 Diabetes

“…There is a corpus of studies indicating that knowledge about nutrition issues is associated with behavioral intention and performance (e.g., [51][52][53]). Other studies, however, point to the exact opposite (e.g., [54,55]). Reasons for this inconsistency can be found in the subject matter and its complexity, as well as in the process of human decision-making [56].…”