Perspective on the consumption of ultra-processed foods among university students

Abstract

The study examines the perspective on the consumption of ultra-processed foods among university students. The consumption of ultra-processed foods by university students has always been a concern for nutrition specialists and university specialists because there is no law that regulates sales in sales centers or stores near the university as there is for regular education. There is also no culture of healthy food consumption in university students, despite being trained in healthy food and eating habits that students immediately fall back on, so the purpose of this research is to analyze and describe the prospects of consumption of ultra-processed foods among university student in the province of Sullana. For which a descriptive design was used with a quantitative, correlational, and intentional sampling approach due to the ease of digital communication, a survey was used in which any student could participate voluntarily and anonymously. This questionnaire had 26 questions whose answers were on a Likert scale of five points, in which 827 university students participated. The results show that there is a high level of consumption of ultra-processed foods among university students, with preferences for pastry products, cookies, and chocolates. It is concluded that university students do not have a culture of healthy food consumption and consume all kinds of products found in the surroundings of the university, and these are what are called "junk" foods that damage health sooner or later.