Evaluation of nutritional status of foreign students at King Saud University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
AbstractObjective:The current study was conducted to assess the nutritional status and associated risk factors among foreign students residing at King Saud University for different periods and to explore its correlations.Design:A cross-sectional study was conducted during the spring semester of 2018. A total of 400 male students aged 18–35 years had participated in the current study after signing a written consent form according to Helsinki Declaration.Setting:A structural questionnaire was used to collect data on daily food intake and habits and socio-economic characteristics. Nutrients of food intake were assessed using the Esha programme and compared with that of dietary requirement intake (DRI). A body composition analyser was used to measure body fat (BF), visceral fat (VF) and BMI. Spearman correlation coefficients and simple regression analysis were performed to determine associations between variables.Participants:Foreign students residing for different periods (<6 months: 200 students and >6 months: 200 students) were used as subjects.Results:The students who stayed <6 months consumed lower level of some nutrients than that of the DRI compared with those stayed >6 months. Overweight and obesity were more common among students who stayed >6 months with high values of BF and VF. Several risk factors were positively or negatively correlated with the students’ nutrition proxies.Conclusion:Most of the students who stayed >6 months are suffered from overweight. Some independent variables were found to be significantly correlated with the students’ nutrition proxies either positively or negatively.