PATTERN OF JUNK FOOD CONSUMPTION AMONGHOSTELITE AND DAY SCHOLAR MEDICALSTUDENTS OF PESHAWAR

Background:
Food is an important part of a person’s life. Healthy food is equivalent to better
health. On the other hand, junk foods are considered to have very low nutritional
value. They have also been associated with various diseases and nutritional
deficiencies. As the world advances, people are pushed to consider more and more
readily available food options. Young people especially students are particularly
more attracted towards it.
1.2 Objectives:
1.2.1 General Objectives:
i. To find the general prevalence of junk food consumption among medical
students of Peshawar
ii. To compare junk food consumption between hostelite and day scholar
medical students of Peshawar
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1.2.2 Specific Objectives
i. To find out the frequency of junk food consumption among medical
students in Peshawar
ii. To analyze the difference in junk food consumption among hostelite and
day scholar medical students of Peshawar
iii. To determine the factors responsible for the increased consumption in a
group (if any)
1.3 Methodology:
A cross-sectional study was carried out among the MBBS students of five different
medical colleges in Peshawar. Simple random sampling was done and 207 students
were chosen. Official approval from each institution was taken followed by consent
from all participating students. A self-made questionnaire was used to interview the
students about various aspects of their junk food consumption. Data collected was
analyzed using SPSS v21.
1.4 Results:
Data was collected from 207 medical students, among which 49.8% were male and
50.2% were female. The mean age of participants was 21.49. 44.4% were hostelites
while the other 55.6% were day scholars. The most commonly observed frequency
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of consumption was ‘weekly’ among 102 participants (49.3%). Among the most
consumed items fast foods (50.5%) and snacks (27.1%) were on the top of the list.
Gender and frequency of fast food consumption revealed a significant association
(p=0.013). The student’s residential status did not appear to have a statistically
significant effect. (p=0.195). The data revealed that the most extensively chosen
reason for junk food consumption was ‘taste’ as selected by t78 of all participants
(62.7%). Comparison of hostelite and day scholars for various factors like ‘taste’,
‘convenience’, affordability, social and ‘peer pressure’, ‘craving’ and ‘availability’
did not yield a significant difference.
1.5 Conclusions:
This study concludes that hostelite and day scholar medical students consume junk
foods at an equal rate. The most consumed junk food is ‘fast food’ followed by
‘snacks’. The biggest reason why students consume junk food is the taste.
Availability affordability and other factors do not contribute significantly.
1.6 Keywords:
Junk food, Medical Students, Eating Habits, Food and Nutrition