MAIN SOURCES OF COOKING KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS AMONG UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AND POTENTIAL EFFECTS UPON HEALTHY EATING HABITS

Abstract

Meal preparation by undergraduate students can affect general eating behaviors and diet qualities. Studies have shown that an increased frequency of food preparation has resulted in healthier eating habits (i.e. decreased use of fast food, higher fruit and vegetable consumption). The purpose of this study is to determine undergraduate students’ main sources of cooking knowledge and skills and how these affect cooking frequency and eating habits (i.e. fruit and vegetable intake). Undergraduate students (n= 420, mean age 19 years, 55.5% white, 23.8% Hispanic, 8.6% Asian, 4.5% African- American, 0.7% Native American, 6.9% other) enrolled in nutritional science courses were surveyed regarding demographic data, cooking and food preparation habits, sources of cooking knowledge and skill, and fruit/vegetable intake. Among those who only chose option A for question 8, the median response was ‘Rarely’ in terms of preparing their food, while those who did not choose option A, but chose at least one of the options B-G for question 8, the median response was ‘Sometimes’. There was not a significant association between the consumption of at least three servings of fruits or vegetables and learning to cook from family (p-value = .180) nor choosing answer options B-G for question 8.