Kassidi L Cullen¹, Shelley L Holden¹*, Eunmin (Min) Hwang², Craig Parkes¹, Aline E. Botsis¹ and Glickman³

¹Department of Health, Kinesiology and Sport, USA
²Department of Hospitality and Tourism, USA
³Kent State University, USA

*Corresponding Author: Shelley L Holden, Department of Health, Kinesiology and Sport, USA.

Received: March 13, 2023; Published: March 29, 2023

Abstract

Fast-food consumption has enabled the spread of global obesity and its detrimental effects. College students are impacted by increased fast-food consumption as they establish formative eating habits in a life stage characterized by increased independence. This study aimed to determine the difference in fast-food consumption between American and Canadian college students, the effect of fast-food consumption on body mass index (BMI) and the effect of living arrangements on fast-food consumption. A survey derived from the Michigan Behavioral Risk Factor Survey and prior research studies was distributed to 153 students at four-year, Division I universities in the United States and Canada. Study results indicated that American college students have significantly higher fast-food consumption frequency compared to those from Canada. Differences between fast-food consumption and BMI along with differences between living arrangements and fast-food consumption were insignificant. The impact of nutrition course participation on fast-food consumption was also insignificant. However, when examining previous nutritional education sources, most American and Canadian respondents reported the internet as their greatest source for nutrition education. When examining reasons for fast-food consumption, taste or enjoyment was the main reason indicated by American respondents while convenience or fast service was the main reason indicated by Canadian respondents.

Keywords: Obesity; Fast Food Consumption; College Students; Body Mass Index

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Citation

Citation: Cullen., et al. “Fast-Food Consumption of American vs. Canadian College Students".Acta Scientific Nutritional Health 7.4 (2023): 59-65.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2023 Shelley L Holden., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.