Evaluation of lifestyle and nutritional status in off-site University Italian Students (ADISU-Foggia): A pilot study

Fiorenzo Moscatelli; Maria Ester  La Torre; Maria Ida De Stefano; Luigi Antonio Marinaccio; Paride Vasco; Gabriella Marsala; Antonella De Maria; Vincenzo Monda; Ines Villano; Pierpaolo Limone; Marcellino Monda; Antonietta Messina; Antonietta Monda; Rita Polito; Giovanni Messina

doi:10.23751/pn.v25i4.15211

Evaluation of lifestyle and nutritional status in off-site University Italian Students (ADISU-Foggia): A pilot study

Authors

Fiorenzo Moscatelli Telematic University Pegaso
Maria Ester La Torre Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Maria Ida De Stefano Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Luigi Antonio Marinaccio Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Paride Vasco Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
Gabriella Marsala U.O.C. of Conventional Pharmaceuticals, 95100 Catania
Antonella De Maria Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Human Physiology and Unit of Dietetics and Sports Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”,
Vincenzo Monda Department of Economics, Law, Computer Science and Motor Sciences, University “Parthenope”, 801031, Naples; Italy
Ines Villano Telematic University Pegaso
Pierpaolo Limone Telematic University Pegaso
Marcellino Monda Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Human Physiology and Unit of Dietetic and Sport Medicine, Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
Antonietta Messina Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Human Physiology and Unit of Dietetic and Sport Medicine, Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
Antonietta Monda Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Human Physiology and Unit of Dietetic and Sport Medicine, Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
Rita Polito Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia
Giovanni Messina 4Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Human Physiology and Unit of Dietetics and Sports Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Naples, Italy

Keywords:

Obesity, university students, eating behaviors, physical activity, Nutrition

Abstract

Background and aim: Unhealthy lifestyle represent one of the main public problems. The World Health Organization (WHO) coined the term “globesity” in 2001 to emphasize the serious threat caused by the excessive weight gain of human beings around the world. The aim of this investigation is to carry out pilot study to detect the nutritional status, eating habits, lifestyle and psychological state related to eating disorders of the Apulian university population. Methods: In this study were recruited 80 students (54 female and 26 male; 21.2±2.16 years). Body composition, eating behaviors and physical activity levels were assessed. All participants completed questionnaires and then the nutritional visits. Results: Males have an average stature of 176.3 ± 8.2 cm and a weight of 73.6 kg ± 13.5. While the females have an average height of 162.2 cm ± 6.3 with a weight of 61.9 kg ± 15.2. The BMI on average is in the normal weight range for both males and females, respectively 23.7 ± 3.8 for males and 23.5 ± 4.6 for females. Males are more active than females. Eating habits shows that the participant consumed approximatively 50% of carbohydrates, 20 % of protein and 30% of lipids. Conclusions: These data shows that the diet of the sample analyzed is in line with national trends and with the departure from food models that have long been recognized as a fundamental for a correct lifestyle, also due to a choice of packaged foods that off-site students use a lot, confirming that nutrition educational program is fundamental, against obesity.

References

De Lorenzo A, Romano L, Di Renzo L, Di Lorenzo N, Cenname G, Gualtieri P. Obesity: A preventable, treatable, but relapsing disease. Nutrition 2020; 71:110615.

World Health Organization Obesity and Overweight. Available online: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs311/en/

Lombardo M, Guseva E, Perrone MA, Müller A, Rizzo G, Storz MA. Changes in Eating Habits and Physical Activity after COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdowns in Italy. Nutrients 2021; 13(12):4522.

Moscatelli F, Sessa F, Valenzano A, et al. COVID-19: Role of Nutrition and Supplementation. Nutrients 2021; 13(3): 976.

Di Renzo L, Gualtieri P, Pivari F, et al. Eating habits and lifestyle changes during COVID-19 lockdown: an Italian survey. J. Transl. Med 2020; 18(1): 229.

Lugo A, Stival C, Paroni L, et al. The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on gambling habit: A cross-sectional study from Italy. J. Behav. Addict 2021; 10(3): 711–721.

Messina G, Dalia C, Tafuri D, et al. Orexin-A controls sympathetic activity and eating behavior. Front. Psychol 2014; 5: 997.

Odone A, Lugo A, Amerio A, et al. COVID-19 lockdown impact on lifestyle habits of Italian adults. Acta Biomed 2020; 91(9-S): 87–89.

Moynihan AB, van Tilburg WA, Igou ER, Wisman A, Donnelly AE, Mulcaire JB. Eaten up by boredom: consuming food to escape awareness of the bored self. Front Psychol 2015; 6: 369.

Rodríguez-Martín BC, Meule A. Food craving: new contributions on its assessment, moderators, and consequences. Front Psychol 2015; 6: 21.

Ma Y, Ratnasabapathy R, Gardiner J. Carbohydrate craving: not everything is sweet. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2017; 20(4): 261–265.

Prete M, Luzzetti A, Augustin LSA, et al. Changes in Lifestyle and Dietary Habits during COVID-19 Lockdown in Italy: Results of an Online Survey. Nutrients 2021; 13(6): 1923.

World Health Organization (WHO). GlobalPhysical Activity Surveillance. Available online: https://www.who.int/ncds/surveillance/steps/GPAQ/en/

Guthold R, Stevens GA, Riley LM, Bull FC. Worldwide trends in insufficient physical activity from 2001 to 2016: a pooled analysis of 358 population-based surveys with 1·9 million participants [published correction appears in Lancet Glob Health. 2019 Jan;7(1):e36]. Lancet Glob Health 2018; 6(10):e1077-e1086.

Singh SA, Dhanasekaran D, Ganamurali NLP, Sabarathinam S. Junk food-induced obesity- a growing threat to youngsters during the pandemic. Obes Med 2021; 26:100364.

Bauer KW, Larson NI, Nelson MC, Story M, Neumark-Sztainer D. Socio-environmental, personal and behavioural predictors of fast-food intake among adolescents. Public Health Nutr 2009; 12(10):1767-1774.

Visschers VH, Siegrist M. When reduced fat increases preference. How fat reduction in nutrition tables and numeracy skills affect food choices. Appetite 2010; 55(3):730-733.

Messina G, De Luca V, Viggiano A, et al. Autonomic nervous system in the control of energy balance and body weight: personal contributions. Neurol Res Int 2013; 639280.

Rouhani MH, Mirseifinezhad M, Omrani N, Esmaillzadeh A, Azadbakht L. Fast Food Consumption, Quality of Diet, and Obesity among Isfahanian Adolescent Girls. J Obes 2012; 2012:597924.

Cohen S, Janicki-Deverts D. Who’s stressed? Distributions of psychological stress in the united states in probability samples from 1983, 2006, and 2009. J. Appl. Soc. Psychol 2012 42:1320–1334.

Sofi F, Cesari F, Abbate R, Gensini GF, Casini A. Adherence to Mediterranean diet and health status: meta-analysis. BMJ 2008; 337:a1344.

Sofi F, Macchi C, Abbate R, Gensini GF, Casini A. Mediterranean diet and health status: an updated meta-analysis and a proposal for a literature-based adherence score. Public Health Nutr 2014; 17(12): 2769–2782.

Sofi F, Abbate R, Gensini GF, Casini, A. Accruing evidence on benefits of adherence to the Mediterranean diet on health: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Clin Nutr 2010; 92(5): 1189–1196.

Bach-Faig A, Berry EM, Lairon D, et al. Mediterranean Diet Foundation Expert Group. Mediterranean diet pyramid today. Science and cultural updates. Public Health Nutr 2011; 14(12A): 2274–2284.

Hills AP, Dengel DR, Lubans DR. Supporting public health priorities: recommendations for physical education and physical activity promotion in schools. Prog Cardiovasc Dis 2015; 57(4):368-374.

Triggiani AI, Valenzano A, Ciliberti MA, et al. Heart rate variability is reduced in underweight and overweight healthy adult women. Clin Physiol Funct Imaging 2017; 37(2): 162–167.

Mannocci A, Di Thiene D, Del Cimmuto A, et al. International Physical Activity Questionnaire: validation and assessment in an Italian sample. Ital J Public Health 2010; 7(4): 369-76

Estruch R, Ros E, Salas-Salvadó J, et al. PREDIMED Study Investigators. Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease with a Mediterranean Diet Supplemented with Extra-Virgin Olive Oil or Nuts. N Engl J Med 2018; 378(25):e34.

Garner DM, Olmsted MP, Bohr Y, Garfinkel PE. The eating attitudes test: Psychometric features and clinical correlates. Psychological Medicine 1982; (12):871-878.

Calugi S, Ricca V, Castellini G, et al. The eating disorder examination: reliability and validity of the Italian version. Eating and weight disorders : EWD 2015; 20(4): 505–511.

Ceccarelli G, Bellato M, Zago M, Cusella G, Sforza C, Lovecchio N. BMI and inverted BMI as predictors of fat mass in young people: a comparison across the ages. Annals of human biology 2020; 47(3): 237–243.

Jaremków A, Markiewicz-Górka I, Hajdusianek W, Gać P. Relationships between Body Composition Parameters and Phase Angle as Related to Lifestyle among Young People. JCM 2021; 11(1): 80.

Bray GA, Kim KK, Wilding JPH, World Obesity Federation. Obesity: a chronic relapsing progressive disease process. A position statement of the World Obesity Federation. Obes Rev 2017; 18(7): 715-723.

OECD (2019), The Heavy Burden of Obesity: The Economics of Prevention. Available online: https://doi.org/10.1787/67450d67-en.

Gil MJ. “Mediterranean diet and health”. New Medit 2009; 2-3: 2009.

Bottalico F, Medina X, Capone R, El Bilali H, Debs P. Erosion of the MediterraneanDiet in Apulia Region, South-eastern Italy: exploring socio-cultural and economic dynamics. Food Nutr. Res 2016; 4: 258–266.

García LF. Immune Response, Inflammation, and the Clinical Spectrum of COVID-19. Front Immunol 2020; 11: 1441.

Tan LY, Komarasamy TV, Rmt Balasubramaniam V. Hyperinflammatory Immune Response and COVID-19: A Double Edged Sword. Front Immunol 2021; 12: 742941.

Rapporto osservasalute 2021. “Stato di salute e qualità dell’assistenza nelle regioni italiane”. Available online: https://osservatoriosullasalute.it/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ro-2021-completo.pdf”

Elhakim T, Trinh K, Mansur A, Bridge C, Daye D. Role of Machine Learning-Based CT Body Composition in Risk Prediction and Prognostication: Current State and Future Directions. Diagnostics (Basel) 2023; 3;13(5):968.

di Corcia M, Tartaglia N, Polito R, et al. Functional Properties of Meat in Athletes' Performance and Recovery. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022;19(9): 5145.

Castro EA, Carraça EV, Cupeiro R, et al. The Effects of the Type of Exercise and Physical Activity on Eating Behavior and Body Composition in Overweight and Obese Subjects. Nutrients 2020;12(2):557.

Heymsfield SB, Wang Z, Baumgartner RN, Ross R. Human body composition: advances in models and methods. Annu Rev Nutr 1997; 17: 527-558.

Koehler K, Drenowatz C. Integrated Role of Nutrition and Physical Activity for Lifelong Health. Nutrients 2019;11(7):1437.

Madden AM, Smith S. Body composition and morphological assessment of nutritional status in adults: a review of anthropometric variables. J Hum Nutr Diet 2016; 29(1): 7-25.

Coin A, Sergi G, Minicuci N, et al. Fat-free mass and fat mass reference values by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) in a 20-80 year-old Italian population. Clin Nutr 2008; 27(1): 87–94.

Di Palma D, Tafuri D. Special needs and inclusion in sport management: A specific literature review | Posebne potrebe i uključenje u sportskom menadžmentu: Specifičan pregled literature. Sport Science 2016; 9: 24-31.

Mazzeo F, Santamaria S, Monda V, Messina G, Monda M. Dietary supplements use in competitive and non-competitive boxer: An exploratory study. Biology and Medicine 2016; 8 (4): 1000294.

Gaetano R, Domenico T, Gaetano A. Physical activity and its relation to body and ludic expression in childhood Mediterranean. Journal of Social Sciences 2015; 6 (3): 293–296.

Monda M, Viggiano An, Vicidomini C, Tafuri D, De Luca B. Expresso coffee increases parasympathetic activity in young, healthy people. Nutritional Neuroscience 2009; 12 (1): 43–48.

Sirangelo I, Borriello M, Liccardo M, Scafuro M, Russo P, Iannuzzi C. Hydroxytyrosol Selectively Affects Non-Enzymatic Glycation in Human Insulin and Protects by AGEs Cytotoxicity. Antioxidants 2021; 10(7): 1127.

car Tek N, Karaçil Ermumcu MS, Erdoğan Gövez N, Çıtar Dazıroğlu ME. Evaluation of awareness, knowledge, and attitudes level of sustainable nutrition in different age groups: A cross-sectional study. EUR J ENV PUBLIC HLT 2023;7(4):em0142.

Serra-Majem L, Ortiz-Andrellucchi A. La dieta mediterránea como ejemplo de una alimentación y nutrición sostenibles: enfoque multidisciplinar [The Mediterranean diet as an example of food and nutrition sustainability: a multidisciplinary approach]. Nutr Hosp 2018.

Ruiz-Hernández JA, Guillén Á, Pina D, Puente-López E. Mental Health and Healthy Habits in University Students: A Comparative Associative Study. Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ 2022;12(2):114-126.

Leblanc V, Begin C, Corneau L, Dodin S, Lemieux S. Gender differences in dietary intakes: what is the contribution of motivational variables? J Hum Nutrition Dietetics 2015;28(1):37-46.

Guerreiro VA, Carvalho D, Freitas P. Obesity, Adipose Tissue, and Inflammation Answered in Questions. J Obes 2022; 2022: 2252516.

Li X, Ren Y, Chang K, et al. Adipose tissue macrophages as potential targets for obesity and metabolic diseases. Front Immunol 2023; 19;14:1153915.

Chait A, den Hartigh LJ. Adipose Tissue Distribution, Inflammation and Its Metabolic Consequences, Including Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease. Front Cardiovasc Med 2020; 7: 22.

Polito R, Monda V, Nigro E, et al. The Important Role of Adiponectin and Orexin-A, Two Key Proteins Improving Healthy Status: Focus on Physical Activity. Front Physiol 2020; 11: 356.

Davalli P, Mitic T, Caporali A, Lauriola A, D'Arca D. ROS. Cell Senescence and Novel Molecular Mechanisms in Aging and Age-Related Diseases. Oxid Med Cell Longev 2016; 2016: 3565127.

Shapira N. The Metabolic Concept of Meal Sequence vs. Satiety: Glycemic and Oxidative Responses with Reference to Inflammation Risk, Protective Principles and Mediterranean Diet. Nutrients 2019; 11(10): 2373.

Pérez-Martínez P, Mikhailidis DP, Athyros VG, et al. Lifestyle recommendations for the prevention and management of metabolic syndrome: an international panel recommendation. Nutrition reviews 2017; 75(5): 307–326.

Valenzano A, Polito R, Trimigno V, et al. Effects of Very Low Calorie Ketogenic Diet on the Orexinergic System, Visceral Adipose Tissue, and ROS Production. Antioxidants (Basel). 2019 Dec 13;8(12):643.

Moscatelli F, Messina G, Valenzano A, et al. Relationship between RPE and Blood Lactate after Fatiguing Handgrip Exercise in Taekwondo and Sedentary Subjects, Biol Med (Aligarh) 2015, 1:2.

Viggiano A, Nicodemo U, Viggiano E, et al. Mastication overload causes an increase in O2- production into the subnucleus, Neuroscience. 2010 Mar 17;166(2):416-21.

Monda V, Nigro E, Ruberto M, et al. Synergism or competition between zinc and chromium dietary levels on insulin action mechanism. A method to investigate, Acta Medica Mediterranea, 2017, 33(4):581-585.

Messina A, Monda M, Valenzano A, et al. Functional Changes Induced by Orexin A and Adiponectin on the Sympathetic/Parasympathetic Balance. Front Physiol. 2018 Mar 22;9:259.

Polito R, Nigro E, Elce A, et al. Adiponectin Expression Is Modulated by Long-Term Physical Activity in Adult Patients Affected by Cystic Fibrosis. Mediators Inflamm. 2019 Sep 9;2019:2153934.