Food consumption in Tunisian university students and its association with sociodemographic characteristics and lifestyle behaviours.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to characterise food consumption among students at the University of Carthage (Tunisia), assessing quality of diet and main dietary patterns, and their association with potential conditioning factors. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. Participants self-reported food consumption in two 24-h recalls and information about sociodemographic, anthropometric and lifestyle characteristics such as BMI, birthplace, physical activity, eating places or kitchen appliances. Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS) and the Nutrient Rich Foods (NRF) index (NRF9.3) were used to assess diet quality. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to identify eating patterns. Linear regression models were used to test the association of dietary patterns with the diet quality markers. SETTING: Students at the University of Carthage, Tunisia. PARTICIPANTS: 132 students. RESULTS: Almost 96 % of participants need shifts towards healthier food. Four main food patterns were identified 'Traditional food', 'Transitional food', 'European breakfast' and 'Western food'. 'Traditional food' was the first dietary model, positively associated with MDS and NRF9.3. Women showed higher adherence to 'European breakfast' and higher quality of diet by NRF9.3. Students eating out of home showed higher adherence to 'Western food', those who never kept a regular schedule of meals consumed lower amount of vegetables and tubers, and sedentary or low active students had a higher intake of ready-to-eat products. CONCLUSIONS: Diet quality of the participating Tunisian students is inadequate, but traditional Mediterranean diet remains the main pattern in spite of the advanced transitional nutrition. Some lifestyle risk behaviours affecting quality of diet were identified in this work, which supports the youth's particular vulnerability.

Hábitos alimentarios y evaluación nutricional en una población universitaria tunecina / Food habits and nutritional assessment in a tunisian university population

Introducción: La nutrición y la salud tienen gran importancia a lo largo de la vida y, en particular, en la edad adulta, donde se encuadra la población productiva que sostiene la sociedad. Por ello es fundamental evaluar la calidad de su dieta y sus posibles factores condicionantes. Objetivos: Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron caracterizar los hábitos alimentarios y evaluar la calidad de la dieta de una población de estudiantes universitarios adultos de la Universidad Virtual de Túnez, país del Norte de África que se encuentra en transición nutricional. Métodos: Se desarrolló un estudio transversal con una muestra de 54 estudiantes de dicha Universidad. Los datos se recogieron mediante recordatorio de 24 horas autoadministrado y una encuesta sobre hábitos alimentarios considerando algunos factores socioeconómicos y demográficos que pueden condicionar la ingesta. El Índice de Alimentación Saludable y el Índice de Adherencia a la Dieta Mediterránea se usaron como indicadores de la calidad de la dieta.Resultados y discusión: Los resultados del estudio mostraron una dieta hipocalórica en dicha población. Un 18% de la energía total diaria la aportaron las proteínas y alrededor del 40% la aportaron los hidratos de carbono. Se encontró un alto consumo de azúcares simples, grasa saturada y colesterol. Aparte de los aceites y grasas, los alimentos cárnicos fueron la principal fuente de lípidos (19%), aportando el grupo del pescado sólo el 3%. Según el Índice de Alimentación Saludable más del 50% de los estudiantes tienen una dieta calificada como inadecuada y más del 40% tienen necesidad de cambios en su dieta. El estudio también mostró baja adherencia al patrón de dieta mediterráneo (AU)

Introduction: Nutrition and health are of great importance throughout life, in particular in adulthood due to active population is included among the adults. Therefore, it is essential to assess the quality of the diet and the possible conditioning factors. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to characterize food habits and assess the quality of the diet of university students from the Virtual University of Tunisia, a North African country in nutritional transition. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study performed with data collected from a sample of 54 students from this University. For each individual a questionnaire involving socio-economic and demographic data was self-reported. Food consumption was gathered by a 24 hours recall. The assessment of diet quality was conducted by Healthy Eating Index and Mediterranean Diet Score. Results and discussion: The study revealed that the diet of this population is hypocaloric. The percentage of total energy from proteins was 18% and the percentage of total energy from carbohydrates was about 40%. The diet was high in simple sugars, saturated fat and cholesterol. Apart from oils and fat, the main source of lipids had an animal origin from meat (19%), and the fish group only provided 3% of this macronutrient. According to Healthy Eating Index classification more than 50% of students scored "poor" and more than 40% "needs improvement" about the quality of their diet. The study also showed low adherence rates to the Mediterranean diet (AU)

[Food habits and nutritional assessment in a tunisian university population]. / Hábitos alimentarios y evaluación nutricional en una población universitaria tunecina.

INTRODUCTION: Nutrition and health are of great importance throughout life, in particular in adulthood due to active population is included among the adults. Therefore, it is essential to assess the quality of the diet and the possible conditioning factors. OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to characterize food habits and assess the quality of the diet of university students from the Virtual University of Tunisia, a North African country in nutritional transition. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study performed with data collected from a sample of 54 students from this University. For each individual a questionnaire involving socio-economic and demographic data was self-reported. Food consumption was gathered by a 24 hours recall. The assessment of diet quality was conducted by Healthy Eating Index and Mediterranean Diet Score. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The study revealed that the diet of this population is hypocaloric. The percentage of total energy from proteins was 18% and the percentage of total energy from carbohydrates was about 40%. The diet was high in simple sugars, saturated fat and cholesterol. Apart from oils and fat, the main source of lipids had an animal origin from meat (19%), and the fish group only provided 3% of this macronutrient. According to Healthy Eating Index classification more than 50% of students scored "poor" and more than 40% "needs improvement" about the quality of their diet. The study also showed low adherence rates to the Mediterranean diet.

Introducción: La nutrición y la salud tienen gran importancia a lo largo de la vida y, en particular, en la edad adulta, donde se encuadra la población productiva que sostiene la sociedad. Por ello es fundamental evaluar la calidad de su dieta y sus posibles factores condicionantes. Objetivos: Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron caracterizar los hábitos alimentarios y evaluar la calidad de la dieta de una población de estudiantes universitarios adultos de la Universidad Virtual de Túnez, país del Norte de África que se encuentra en transición nutricional. Métodos: Se desarrolló un estudio transversal con una muestra de 54 estudiantes de dicha Universidad. Los datos se recogieron mediante recordatorio de 24 horas autoadministrado y una encuesta sobre hábitos alimentarios considerando algunos factores socioeconómicos y demográficos que pueden condicionar la ingesta. El Índice de Alimentación Saludable y el Índice de Adherencia a la Dieta Mediterránea se usaron como indicadores de la calidad de la dieta. Resultados y discusión: Los resultados del estudio mostraron una dieta hipocalórica en dicha población. Un 18% de la energía total diaria la aportaron las proteínas y alrededor del 40% la aportaron los hidratos de carbono. Se encontró un alto consumo de azúcares simples, grasa saturada y colesterol. Aparte de los aceites y grasas, los alimentos cárnicos fueron la principal fuente de lípidos (19%), aportando el grupo del pescado sólo el 3%. Según el Índice de Alimentación Saludable más del 50% de los estudiantes tienen una dieta calificada como inadecuada y más del 40% tienen necesidad de cambios en su dieta. El estudio también mostró baja adherencia al patrón de dieta mediterráneo.