A student's poor eating habits can lead to a lifetime of illness
University of British Columbia Okanagan campus
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Dr. Joan Bottorff, a Professor with UBCO's School of Nursing, is one of
several international researchers who published a multi-site study looking at
the eating habits of university students. Almost 12,000 medical students from
31 universities in China participated in the study that aimed to determine the
association between eating behaviours, obesity and various diseases.
The point, says Dr. Bottorff, is that many poor eating habits begin at
university and can continue for decades.
"We know many students consume high-calorie meals along with sugary foods and drinks and there is lots of evidence to show those kinds of eating behaviours can lead to obesity," says Dr. Bottorff. "These are not the only habits that lead to obesity, but they are important and can't be ruled out."
The study, published recently in Preventive Medicine Reports,
was led by Dr. Shihui Peng with the School of Medicine at China's Jinan
University. While there is well-established research that links unhealthy diets
to many chronic diseases, this study aimed to show a relationship between poor
eating habits and infectious diseases including colds and diarrhea.
Dr. Bottorff notes, due to the nature of the study, it was not possible to
show cause and effect but the relationship between poor eating habits, obesity
and respiratory illnesses were well supported.
"There has been biomedical research that also supports this link
between obesity and infectious diseases, and most recently this has been
related to COVID-19," she adds. "We know from some of the recent
publications related to COVID-19, obese people were more likely to have severe
conditions and outcomes. Reasons that have been offered for this increased
vulnerability include impaired breathing from the pressure of extra weight and
poorer inflammatory and immune responses."
A typical student diet of high-sugar or high-calorie foods can become a
long-term issue as these habits can lead to obesity. Dr. Bottorff says there is
evidence to show that stress and anxiety can cause overeating, but overeating
can also lead to stress and depression.
"The bottom line here is that we shouldn't be ignoring this risk
pattern among young people at university. It is well documented that a
significant portion of students have unhealthy diets," she adds. "The
types of foods they are eating are linked to obesity. And this can lead to
other health problems that are not just about chronic disease but also
infectious diseases."
While Dr. Bottorff says students should be taught about healthy eating
while at university the onus should be on the school to provide healthy, and
affordable, food options for all students.
"We need to think about the food environment that we provide
students. We need to ensure that in our cafeterias and vending machines, there
are healthy food options so that they can eat on the go but also make healthy
food choices."
It's not an issue going unnoticed. UBC Student Wellness and Food Services
work together to address food security and food literacy and recognize that a
lack of affordable food options, coupled with the stress of university life,
can negatively impact students' food choices.
Food insecure students have access to a low-barrier food bank and a meal
share program. Meanwhile, UBCO Food Services' culinary team prioritizes local,
organic and sustainably-sourced ingredients, and works with a registered
dietitian to ensure a wide variety of food options are available to all diners.
Dr. Bottorff agrees there have been improvements to food options in
cafeterias and notes the drinks in many vending machines have been rearranging
so healthier items are at eye-level and sugary choices are lower down.
"I know many post-secondary schools are trying to figure out how we can do better and are trying to address these problems," she adds. "It's great, because four or five years ago, we weren't. So, I think we're on the right road, but I think we're a long way from finished."
