Hábitos alimentarios y estrés académico en estudiantes universitarios durante la pandemia del COVID-19, Paraguay 2021

Abstract

The objective of the study was to identify the eating habits related to the level of stress among students of the National University of Caaguazú during the COVID-19 pandemic. A descriptive, observational, cross-sectional study was carried out with 353 students selected from different faculties. Demographic variables, eating habits and academic stress were studied. A total of 353 university students were included in the study, 64.9% female, and 59.5% under 23 years of age. 36.5% belonged to the Faculty of Production Sciences while 30% were from the third year. In total, 64.8% (229 students) had a high level of stress. High stress level was related to high consumption of sweets (AOR= 2.94, 1.57-5.51), high consumption of fast food (AOR= 2.23, 1.14-4.32), low consumption of fruits (AOR= 1.66, 0.99-2.79), skipping lunch (AOR= 2.94, 1.55-5.60), and increased daily snacks (AOR= 3.36, 1.74-6.47). The results of our study made visible the problem that academic stress during the Covid-19 pandemic influenced the acquisition of bad eating habits.