Healthy food choice education for undergraduate university students: a quasi-experimental design

OBJECTIVE: A healthy diet is necessary in every period of life to protect health and prevent diseases. The main purpose of nutrition education is to convey the importance of adequate-balanced nutrition and healthy food choice in maintaining health.SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This study was conducted to determine the food choice behaviors of the students who took (n=95) and did not take (n=145) the "Healthy Food Choice" course at Cukurova University. The "Healthy Food Choice" course was given as an elective in the fall semester of the 2021-2022 academic year. The data were collected between April and June 2022 through a demographic questionnaire, the healthy food choice test, and the perceived stress scale (PSS).RESULTS: Sensory appeal and health were found to be the most important determinants, while familiarity and ethical concern were the least important factors in the food choice of the students who took the course. In the control group, sensory appeal and price were the most important determinants, while ethical concern and weight control were the least important factors. Health, natural content, and weight control were more effective in food choices of the students who took the healthy food choice course compared to the controls (p<0.05). Also, PSS score was associated with the importance of the food price positively in the case group and negatively associated with natural content in the controls. Furthermore, the present study showed that BMI was positively associated with weight control and familiarity in the HFC group and negatively associated with natural content in the control group.CONCLUSIONS: Giving the HFC course to university students showed positive results in terms of food choice behaviors.