Study on pattern of consumption of fruits and vegetables and associated factors among medical students of Delhi
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18203/2320-6012.ijrms20212234Keywords:
Fruits and vegetables, Medical students, Cross-sectional, Servings, Barriers and facilitatorsAbstract
Background: Fruits and vegetables are a rich source of essential micronutrients i.e. vitamins/minerals and dietary fibers required for the normal daily functionality of the body. Young adults such as medical students are a particularly vulnerable population in terms of health issues and adequate diet. Objective of the study was to find the pattern of fruits and vegetables consumption in undergraduate medical students of Delhi.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was planned among 300 undergraduate students from medical college in New Delhi. The questionnaire consisted of questions about identification data, pattern of fruit and vegetable consumption. Data was analyzed by SPSS software version 21.0 and for qualitative data analysis chi-square test was used.
Results: Mean age of study subjects was 20.82±2.1 years and females (52.7%) were more as compared to (47.3%) males. Out of 300 participants, only one third (33.3%) of study participants consumed more than five servings of fruits and vegetables. More than half of study participants felt that unsafe use of pesticides, difficult to eat five servings in a day, poor handling and poor quality of fruits and vegetables were the most common barriers in consumption of FVs. Age and semester of study participants and education status of mothers were found significant predictors of consumption of recommended number of serving of FVs in day.
Conclusions: This study concludes that only one third of study participants consumed more than five servings of fruits and vegetables which is recommended number of serving in a day. So, there is a need to increase awareness about importance of fruits and vegetables consumption among study population.
Metrics
References
GBD 2017 Diet Collaborators. Health effects of dietary risks in 195 countries, 1990-2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. Lancet. 2019;393(10184):1958-72.
Wang X, Ouyang Y, Liu J, Zhu M, Zhao G, Bao W, et al. Fruit and vegetable consumption and mortality from all causes, cardiovascular disease, and cancer: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. BMJ. 2014;349:4490.
Hall JN, Moore S, Harper SB, Lynch JW. Global variability in fruit and vegetable consumption. Am J Prev Med. 2009;36:402–9.
Mukherjee A, Dutta S, Goyal MT. India's phytonutrient report: A snapshot of fruits and Vegetables consumption availability and implications for phytonutrient intake. New Delhi: Academic Foundation; 2015: 1-10.
WHO. The WHO STEPS Instrument, 2018. Available at: http://www.who.int/chp/steps. Accessed on 17 March 2021.
Vibhute N, Baad R, Belgaumi U, Kadashetti V, Bommanavar S, Kamate W. Dietary habits amongst medical students: An institution-based study. J Fam Med Prim Care. 2018;7(6):1464.
Ramezankhani A, Gharlipour Z, Motalebi M, Heydarabadi AB, Bazhan M, Imanzad M, et al. Consumption of fruits and vegetables among college students living in dormitory in Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences. J Paramed Sci. 2013;5:7-10.
Schroeter C, House LA. Fruit and Vegetable Consumption of College Students: What is the Role of Food Culture?. J Food Distrib Res. 2015;46(3):131-52.
Shokrvash B, Majlessi F, Montazeri A, Nedjat S, Shojaeezadeh D, Rahimi A, et al. Fruit and vegetables consumption among adolescents: A study from a developing country. World Appl Sci J. 2013;21(10):1502-11.
Al OHH. The pattern of fruit and vegetable consumption among Saudi university students. Glob J Health Sci. 2014;6(2):155-62.
Omar M, Nouh F, Younis M, Younis M, Ebrahim T, Salim W, et al. Fruits and Vegetables Consumption among Benghazi University Students. SAS J Med. 2017;3:299-306.
Perera T, Madhujith T. The Pattern of Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables by Undergraduate Students: A Case Study. Tropical Agri Res. 2012;23(3):261-71.
Izzah N, Aminah A, Pauzi M, Lee YH, Rozita W, Fatimah S. Patterns of fruits and vegetable consumption among adults of different ethnics in Selangor, Malaysia. Inter Food Res J. 2012;19(3):1095-107.
Ruel MT, Minot N, Smith L. Patterns and determinants of fruit and vegetable consumption in sub-Saharan Africa: a multicountry comparison. Geneva: WHO; 2005.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
