Scheduled for RCB Oral Presentations: Young Professionals, Friday, April 11, 2008, 7:30 AM - 8:30 AM, Convention Center: 202C


Intuitive Eating, Diet, and Health among College Students

Jennifer Zabriskie1, Britney I. Rand1, Kathryn E. Morrical2 and Roseann M. Lyle1, (1)Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, (2)Purdue University, Grabill, IN

Significance: Intuitive eating (eating for physiologic reasons of hunger and satiety) may be a viable long-term solution to improving health and reducing obesity. Early research indicated that intuitive eating was linked to lower cholesterol levels, cardiovascular risk, BMI and improved self-esteem. A basic assumption of intuitive eating is that an internal mechanism naturally governs both the amount and type of food consumed, thus ensuring a balanced, healthy diet. Therefore, the primary purpose of this study was to examine the diets of intuitive eaters, specifically with respect to fruit, vegetable and fat intake. Additionally, this study examined physical activity and risk behaviors (e.g., seatbelt and cigarette/drug use) of intuitive eaters. Design: Four thousand randomly selected undergraduate students were invited to take an online survey that included the following: 1) Intuitive Eating Scale (IES); 2) All-Day Fruit and Vegetable Screener; 3) Percent Energy from Fat Screener; and 4) questions regarding demographics and risk behaviors. In addition to the randomly selected undergraduate students, participants were recruited to increase the number of minorities who completed the survey. Data were analyzed with SPSS using Pearson's, Spearman's, and partial correlations, Student's T-test, and ANOVA. Results: Among the 440 students who completed the survey (8.3% response online, 60.1% response for the paper survey), intuitive eating and fruit and vegetable intake were not related. There was a significant positive correlation between intuitive eating and fat intake (r=0.12, p=0.02), and a negative correlation between intuitive eating and BMI (r=-0.18, p<0.001). Those who ate intuitively engaged in significantly less vigorous intensity physical activity (p=0.04) and strength building activity (p=0.04). Intuitive eaters were more likely to wear a seatbelt (r=0.15, p=0.001), and less likely to use alcohol (r=-0.10, p=0.03), marijuana (r=-0.09, p=0.05) and illicit drugs (r=-0.10, p=0.03). When both age and sex were controlled in a partial correlation, all correlations in the full sample retained significance and the negative correlation between IES score and BMI increased in magnitude from -0.18 to -0.25 (p<0.001). Conclusion: While this study found that intuitive eaters were more likely to have a lower BMI and engage in some protective behaviors, they were not more likely to consume more fruits and vegetables or less fat than those who do not eat intuitively. Thus, although intuitive eating has been related to some dimensions of improved health, more research is needed to discover the exact mechanisms.
Keyword(s): college level issues, health promotion, nutrition

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