P572 - THE EFFECT OF NUTRITION LITERACY ON ANTHROPOMETRIC MEASUREMENTS AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN HEALTH-RELATED FIELDS

P572

THE EFFECT OF NUTRITION LITERACY ON ANTHROPOMETRIC MEASUREMENTS AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN HEALTH-RELATED FIELDS

G. Suna^1,*, H. Kamarlı Altun¹

¹Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Türkiye

Rationale: Nutrition education is a key factor influencing nutrition literacy (NL) among university students studying in health-related fields.This study aims to assess the relationship between NL levels and anthropometric measurements in students from various health faculties.

Methods: A total of 303 university students (mean age: 22.42±2.50 years) from the Faculties of Dentistry (n=66), Nursing (n=76), Health Sciences (n=77), and Medicine (n=84) were included in the study. Anthropometric measurements were collected. NL was assessed using the Evaluation Instrument of Nutrition Literacy on Adults (EINLA). One-way ANOVA was used to evaluate differences between faculties, Pearson correlation examined associations between NL and anthropometric data, and linear regression identified NL predictors.

Results: The mean total score of the EINLA among participants was 26.41 ± 3.87. The total EINLA scores of Dentistry students (24.89 ± 3.81) were significantly lower compared to those of students from Faculty of Health Sciences (28.31 ± 3.39) and Faculty of Medicine (26.39 ± 3.84)(p < 0.001). Waist circumference (WC) and BMI values of students in the Faculties of Dentistry and Medicine were significantly higher than those of students in the Faculties of Nursing and Health Sciences (p < 0.05). In Dentistry students, BMI (r=-.033) and WC (r=-.041) were negatively correlated with EINLA scores. According to multiple linear regression analysis, BMI (β=-0.218, p=0.011) and waist-to-hip ratio (β=-5.877, p=0.043) were significant negative predictors of total EINLA score (R²=0.115, n=303).

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Conclusion: Students with lower NL were found to have higher levels of adiposity. Although the participants were all enrolled in health-related faculties, the findings highlight the need for targeted nutrition education programs, particularly for students outside the Faculty of Health Sciences.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared