Feeding habit and the health of undergraduate students: Evidence from Nigeria

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between feeding habit and the health of undergraduate students and to also ascertain the level of awareness of students on the nutritional value of food consumed followed by what necessitate their choice of food and how it affect their health. A stratified and simple random sampling method was adopted. Five research questions were raised in the study. Data was collected using a well-structured questionnaire (distributed to 220 students of Landmark University Kwara State, Nigeria out of which 200 were returned for analysis) along with an in-depth interview. The research design was descriptive survey. The theories used for this research are the rational choice theory and social learning theory. The major finding of the research shows there was a significant relationship between feeding habit and the health of students. There was no relationship between the cost of food and the feeding habit of students. The result revealed that (86.5%) of students' choice of food was based on availability. The effect of feeding habit on the health of students indicated lack of retention (49.5%) while illnesses such as stomach pain, stooling, ulcer and food poisoning were the common reported cases. In conclusion, it was recommended that students should consume food based on its nutritional benefits and not just based on availability. Also the Nigeria government should drive the goal of agrarian revolution in order to meet the food need of the country at a cheaper rate.