When bad food happens to good intentions: female students' food dilemmas

Abstract

Female students' food dilemmas are explored with a special focus on reasons why unhealthy food consumption happens in spite of the students' good intentions to eat healthy diets. The study takes a qualitative approach based on 11 in-depth interviews and 5 focus groups with Danish and international female students. Theoretically, the article draws on existing literature on food and student food consumption and on Warde's food consumption antinomies. The female students in this study find that they are well-informed about nutrition, and several of them express that they are experienced cooks from home. However, what they themselves define as 'bad' food sneaks into their diets, because of lack of time and energy, pressure from their studies and food cravings, along with more liberal rules in social situations. Until now, student food has been explored almost exclusively through quantitative methods, focusing on students as passive and vulnerable. Through qualitative methods, this article invites readers to view female students as complex and empowered food consumers entangled in food dilemmas. Their concerns about healthy eating are significant. They hold a critical view of their parents' food practices, and sometimes even act as role models for family and peers.

Impact of Consumers’ Self-Image and Demographics on Preference for Healthy Labeled Foods

“…There are no significant differences among men and women on the health and value conscious self-image. While previous research (Glanz et al, 1998;Gram & Blichfeldt, 2014) showed that women were more health conscious than men, this study reveals that men are becoming more weight, brand, and variety conscious in their selection of healthy labeled foods. This change could probably be explained with changing sociodemographic environment where more and more men are choosing to remain single, or engaged in building a body or are staying at home to take care of kids and, in this process, improve the quality of diet consumed by them.…”

“…They may also be more brand loyal than men because the relationship with the variety conscious self-image was not significant. The results are supported by the study conducted by Gram and Blichfeldt (2014), which found that despite the fact that female students were more health conscious, their actual consumption of food was becoming more unhealthy due to lack of time and energy and work pressure.…”

“…LeDoux and Vojnovic (2013) found that among the 1,631 participants surveyed, favorable attitudes toward healthy eating were associated with both higher educational level and diet quality, and that higher educated people were more likely to pay "attention to health when buying food," and "organic food consumption," but were less likely to cite health in the perceived role of eating. Gram and Blichfeldt (2014) explored female students' food dilemmas to identify reasons why unhealthy food consumption happened despite the students' good intentions to eat healthy diets and found that female students were well informed about nutrition, and several of them were experienced cooks from home but "bad" food sneaked into their diets, because of lack of time and energy, pressure from their studies and food cravings, along with more liberal rules in social situations.…”

“…Gram and Blichfeldt (2014) explored female students’ food dilemmas to identify reasons why unhealthy food consumption happened despite the students’ good intentions to eat healthy diets and found that female students were well informed about nutrition, and several of them were experienced cooks from home but “bad” food sneaked into their diets, because of lack of time and energy, pressure from their studies and food cravings, along with more liberal rules in social situations.…”

Gender differences in purchase intentions and reasons for meal selection among fast food customers – Opportunities for healthier and more sustainable fast food

“…As a possible consequence of this lack of consistency between intentions and actual behavior, close to half of the female participants and a quarter of the male participants stated that they had a bad conscience when eating fast food. Correspondingly, in a study among young female students, the authors found a strong request in favor of consumption of healthy food; yet, their actual consumption of both healthy and unhealthy food causes them to experience dilemmas regarding their food consumption (Gram & Blichfeldt, 2014). Table 2 Participants' responses in relation to the level of agreement or disagreement to a series of statements and future wants for fast food according to gender.…”