Abstract
Purpose: Students entering university often lack knowledge about fats; whedier students gain such informarion during four years at university is unclear. Students' knowledge of fat in the first and fourth years was measured and compared. The effect of a nutrition course on knowledge was also examined.
Methods: A total of 215 science students at a small undergraduate university completed a 15-item, closed-ended questionnaire concerning knowledge of fats in the diet.
Results: Fourth-year science students have greater nutrition knowledge of fats than do first-year science students (p<0.005). Given diat die majority of first-year students reside on campus and the majority of fourth-year students reside off campus, die purchasing of food and preparation of meals may explain die senior students' greater knowledge of fat. Students who have taken a nutrition course know more about fats dian do those who have not (p<0.001).
Conclusions: Taking even one course in nutrition greatly increases nutrition knowledge. Universities could encourage undergraduate students to take a basic nutrition course, which should emphasize the identification and understanding of different types of dietary fats.
(Can J Diet Prac Res 2007;68:154-159)
(DOI: 10.3148/68.3.2007.154)
R�sum�
Objectif. Les �tudiants nouvellement admis � l'universit� manquent souvent de connaissances sur les lipides et on ne sait pas s'ils obtiennent cette information au cours de leurs quatre ann�es d'�tudes. On a mesur� et compar� les connaissances des �tudiants sur les lipides en premi�re et en quatri�me ann�e. L'effet d'un cours en nutrition sur les connaissances a �galement �t� examin�.
M�diodes. Au total, 215 �tudiants en sciences d'une petite universit� de premier cycle ont rempli un questionnaire de 15 items � questions ferm�es sur leurs connaissances en mati�re de lipides alimentaires.
R�sultats. Les �tudiants de quatri�me ann�e poss�dent une meilleure connaissance nutritionnelle des lipides que ceux de premi�re ann�e (p<0,005). Comme la majorit� des �tudiants de premi�re ann�e r�sident sur le campus et la majorit� de ceux de quatri�me ann�e habitent hors campus, l'achat des aliments et la pr�paration des repas peuvent expliquer que les �tudiants plus avanc�s aient de meilleures connaissances. Les �tudiants qui ont pris le cours en nutrition en savent plus long sur les lipides que ceux qui ne l'ont pas pris (i??,???).
Conclusions. Prendre ne serait-ce qu'un cours en nutrition accro�t consid�rablement les connaissances en cette mati�re. Les universit�s devraient encourager les �tudiants de premier cycle � prendre un cours de base en nutrition qui expliquerait les diff�rents types de lipides alimentaires.
(Rev can prat rech di�t�t 2007;68:154-159)
(DOl: 10.3148/68.3.2007.154)
INTRODUCTION
Overweight and obesity are major public health problems in North America and beyond; in 2004, approximately 15% of Canadian adults were obese and 33% were overweight (1,2). Factors that contribute to overweight include physical inacdvity, energy intake exceeding energy expenditure, genet�cs, family influences, an abundance of high-fat foods, and socioeconomic status (3,4). Because of this alarming trend, many investigators have looked at nutrition knowledge as it relates to consumer knowledge or education (5-9). More specifically, investigators have examined people's basic knowledge about fat and have concluded that they are unwilling or unable to understand key information (10-12).
The overweight/obesity pandemic is also disturbing because it has spread to younger populations. In Canada in 2004, 29% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 were overweight, and 9% were obese (13). For this reason, we decided to look at knowledge of fats in a segment of the university population. Numerous research papers have focused on university or high school students' nutrition knowledge (14-16), behaviour (17), and education (18,19), but no study has been conducted specifically to determine their knowledge of fat. While one study group looked at changes in weight, exercise, and dietary patterns between first year and fourth year in university (20), no one has looked at whether, after four years, senior students know more than first-year students about fat in the diet.
At St. Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia, the majority of first-year students reside and dine on campus (n=742). Apart from preparing snack foods in residence (21,22), firstyear students do limited cooking of their own food. By the time they reach fourth year, most students have moved off campus and are responsible for purchasing, preparing, and cooking their own meals. Whether students gain any knowledge of fats during those years is unclear. We also do not know if students who have taken a nutrition course in the university human nutrition department have greater knowledge of fats.
We measured students' knowledge of fat, and examined whether taking a nutrition course would enhance this knowledge. We chose science students as our study group because they were more likely to have taken at least one nutrition course during their undergraduate years. Our hypothesis was twofold: first, that fourth-year science students would have greater knowledge of dietary fats than did first-year science students, and second, that science students who had taken at least one nutrition course would have greater knowledge of fats than did science students who had not.
METHODS
The sample was taken from the population registered as undergraduate science students at St Francis Xavier University. The total full-time university population was 4,579: 600 were first-year science students and 465 were fourth-year science students. A convenience sampling method was used, which allowed us to sample approximately 120 subjects from each year.
A previously developed and validated closed-ended questionnaire was used (12). We modified it slightly by removing all questions requiring written answers to make it shorter for the students; this was verified by two faculty nutritionists. The questions chosen were based on relevant, general nutrition knowledge of fats and nutrition terms relevant to purchases of dietary fats. It was divided into two sections: ten multiple-choice questions and five true-or-false questions.
We gave the participants a package at the beginning of a lecture, and asked them to complete the questionnaire within 15 minutes. The package included a cover letter providing information on why this study was being performed and the importance of the participants' involvement, a consent form, and a copy of approval from the Human Nutrition Department Research Ethics Committee. All questionnaires were completed during December 2004 and January 2005. Students were asked to fill out information about their degree and major, as well as their year of study, before beginning the survey.
Data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences for Windows (version 12, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, 2005). We analyzed the data for normality with the Komolgorov-Smirnov test (23) . Because most variables departed significandy from normality, the Mann-Whitney U test (23) was used to compare first- and fourth-year students' level of knowledge about fats and the difference in knowledge of fats between students who had taken at least one nutrition course and those who had not. Fisher's exact test (23) was used to determine whether the proportion of students in first year who had taken a nutrition course differed from the proportion of students in fourth year.
RESULTS
The surveys were distributed to 310 students in 10 classes. Ninety-five questionnaires were eliminated from the study because of various factors, including an indication that the participant was not working toward a science degree (n=16), failure to provide any of the information about degree or year of study, failure to sign the consent form (n=51 ), and not being in either the first or fourth year of study (n=28) . Responses were received from students registered in aquatic resources (n=2), biology (n=44), chemistry (n=6), computer science (n=2), human kinetics (n=36), human nutrition (n=ll), mathematics (n=7), nursing (n=93), or an undeclared major (n=14).
Of those who answered the questionnaire fully, 53% were from first year and 47% were from fourth year (Table 1 ) . Fewer first-year than fourth-year students had taken a nutrition course (p<0.005). The questionnaire and percentages of correct and incorrect responses are shown in Table 2. The overall proportion of correct responses identifying fats was higher than the proportion of correct answers to questions on understanding types of fats.
Fourth-year students had more correct answers than did first-year students (p<0.005) (Figure 1). Similarly, students who had taken at least one nutrition course had higher scores for a significantly greater number of questions in comparison with students without a nutrition course (p<0.001) (Figure 2) . No significant difference was evident, however, between scores for either first-year or fourth-year students who had taken at least one course in nutrition (p=0.870) , and no difference was seen between students either in first or fourth year who had not taken at least one nutrition course (p=0.816).
DISCUSSION
Various reasons may explain why fourth-year students have a greater knowledge of fats than do first-year students. First-year students tend to concentrate more on changes in social and physical environments, and less on health issues such as the foods they eat (16,24). First-year students tend to live on campus and have more access to fried and fast foods than do those living off campus (21), and this may be a contributor to first-year weight gain (25). In comparison, fourth-year students tend to be older, live off campus, buy foods, and cook meals, which may improve general nutrition knowledge (26,27). Whether this greater knowledge translates into better food choices is unknown, given that fourth-year students still subsist on small budgets.
Students who had taken at least one nutrition course scored better than those who had not. This finding confirms the role of nutrition education. Even a short course in nutrition greatly increases nutrition knowledge (15); students become more familiar with food terms, such as those pertaining to different types of fats. Although filis study did not include measurement of the impact of nutrition knowledge on food behaviour, previous research suggests that these informed students are more likely to improve their diets and select lower-fat foods (14,15,19,20,28). An encouraging finding was the lack of a significant difference in scores between first-year and fourth-year students who had taken a nutrition course. This suggests that a single course in nutrition is effective at improving nutrition knowledge, and that this improvement does not depend on the student's age or maturity. Because we do not know when the fourth-year students last took a nutrition course, we cannot rule out the possibility that life experiences such as preparing their own meals had contributed to their retention of nutrition knowledge.
We chose a convenience sample of science students to obtain a reasonable proportion who had taken a nutrition course (Table 1). A more representative sample would include students from all disciplines, but very few non-science students take a nutrition course. Of course, our results may not apply to all university students, but there is no reason to expect that students at St. Francis Xavier University are exceptional in terms of nutrition knowledge.
RELEVANCE TO PRACTICE
Previous investigators have suggested that students who are not majoring in nutrition should take a short nutrition course, which may increase awareness of their own dietary choices (15,16). An optional course offered at Canadian universities that teach nutrition would help first-year sUidents understand dietary concepts, instruct them in how to make health-conscious choices, show them how to make more informed decisions with the restricted food choices available on campus, and indicate how they can separate facts from fallacies. Universities could also offer web-based nutrition courses; some students may prefer to work this way rather than take a formal course (29,30). Whether such a computer course would translate into nutrition knowledge, however, is unknown and needs to be verified. Future research should include an examination of whether the differences in knowledge of fats observed here translate into changes in food behaviours among students who have taken a nutrition course. A deeper examination of the nutritional impacts of living off campus would also be worthwhile.
[Reference]
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Registrar's Office, St. Francis Xavier University, for providing us with data on student enrollment, and Dr. Barry Taylor, Department of Biology, St. Francis Xavier University, for his statistical expertise.
This study was funded by the Department of Human Nutrition, St. Francis Xavier University.
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[Author Affiliation]
MJ. PATRICIA MAZIER, PhD, SHEENA L. McLEOD, BSc (Hon), RD,
Department of Human Nutrition, St. Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, NS
