NUTRITIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND EATING HABITS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENT OF ITAHARI SUB-METROPOLITIAN CITY

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the nutritional knowledge and eating habits of college students in Itahari Sub-Metropolitan City. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 206 college students, selected using a multistage random sampling technique. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire, face-to-face interviews, and anthropometric measurements, and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 20. The results showed that 50% of students had good nutritional knowledge, while 51% demonstrated adequate eating habits, and 69.4% had normal nutritional status. The association between nutritional knowledge and eating habits was not statistically significant (χ² = 0.175, p = 0.676). Similarly, no significant association was observed between nutritional status and eating habits (χ² = 3.992, p = 0.262) or between nutritional knowledge and nutritional status (p = 0.463). These findings suggest that, although a substantial proportion of students possess good nutritional knowledge and adequate eating habits, knowledge does not necessarily translate into practice. Targeted behavioral and educational interventions are recommended to help students apply nutritional knowledge in daily life and promote healthier lifestyles.