Cooking and Meal Planning as Predictors of Fruit and Vegetable Intake and BMI in First-Year College Students

Authors

Andrea J. Hanson, South Dakota State University
Kendra K. Kattleman, South Dakota State University
Lacey A. McCormack, South Dakota State University
Wenjun Zhou, University of Tennessee
Onikia N. Brown, Auburn University
Tanya M. Horacek, Syracuse University
Karla P. Shelnutt, University of Florida
Tandalayo Kidd, Kansas State University
Audrey Opoku-Acheampong, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Lisa D. Franzen-Castle, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Melissa D. Olfert, West Virginia University
Sarah E. Colby, University of Tennessee

Author ORCID Identifier

N/A

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6186-2822

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8872-2531

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2346-8151

N/A

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6069-9939

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3799-9212

N/A

N/A

N/A

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6686-3891

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8298-3690

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2019

College/Unit

Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design

Department/Program/Center

Human Nutrition and Foods

Abstract

The objective was to determine if cooking skills and meal planning behaviors are associated with greater fruit and vegetable intake and lower body mass index (BMI) in first-year college students who are at risk for excessive weight gain. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using baseline data from a multi-state research project aimed at preventing weight gain in first-year college students. Cooking type, frequency and confidence, self-instruction for healthful mealtime behavior intention, self-regulation of healthful mealtime behavior, and cup equivalents of fruits and vegetables (FV) were measured using validated surveys. BMI was calculated from measured height and weight. First-year students (n = 1108) considered at risk for weight gain from eight universities completed baseline assessments within the first month of entering college. Multiple linear regression was used to determine associations among independent variables of cooking patterns, meal planning behaviors, and dependent variables of fruit and vegetable intake and BMI, after controlling for the influence of sex. Cooking more frequently, cooking with greater skills, and practicing meal planning behaviors are associated with greater fruit and vegetable intake and lower BMI in first-year college students. Interventions aimed at improving health in college students may be enhanced by incorporating cooking and meal planning components.

Digital Commons Citation

Hanson, Andrea J.; Kattleman, Kendra K.; McCormack, Lacey A.; Zhou, Wenjun; Brown, Onikia N.; Horacek, Tanya M.; Shelnutt, Karla P.; Kidd, Tandalayo; Opoku-Acheampong, Audrey; Franzen-Castle, Lisa D.; Olfert, Melissa D.; and Colby, Sarah E., "Cooking and Meal Planning as Predictors of Fruit and Vegetable Intake and BMI in First-Year College Students" (2019). Faculty & Staff Scholarship. 1964.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/faculty_publications/1964

Source Citation

Hanson, A. J., Kattelmann, K. K., McCormack, L. A., Zhou, W., Brown, O. N., Horacek, T. M., … Colby, S. E. (2019). Cooking and Meal Planning as Predictors of Fruit and Vegetable Intake and BMI in First-Year College Students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(14), 2462. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16142462

Comments

© 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).