Assessment of nutritional status - related factors among students at Cuu Long University, Vietnam

Abstract

Nutrition is the most important factor for humans to survive, to grow, and to be active. Nutritional care for the community is a key to health for each age group. It has rarely been found studies on nutritional status among university students in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. This study aims to assess the nutritional status-related factors among students at Cuu Long University. Being a cross sectional research study, the subjects of the study consisted of 329 students in 6 majors. They were recruited using a systematic and multistage sampling technique. Face-to-face interviews and data collection were conducted through a questionnaire. Nutritional status was measured based on BMI. Minitab 20 was used to describe and analyze the data. The chi-square test was used at p = 0.05. The findings showed that the percentage of students with nutritional status according to BMI CED level (Chronic Energy Deficiency) – thin was 24.32% with CED grade 1 was 14.29% and CED grade 2 was 7.29% and CED grade 3 was 2.74%; the percentage of students with nutritional status according to BMI level of overweight - Obesity was 13.98%, of which obesity was 3.04% with obesity grade 1 was 2.43% and obesity grade 2 was 0.61%. The findings also showed that students’ majors, gender, sleep duration, and playing sports were four factors associated with the students’ nutritional status. Appropriate measures should be taken to improve the nutritional status of students.