Differences in Nutritional Status According to the Residence Types among University Students in Gwangju

This study examined the nutritional status of university students in Gwangju according to their residence types.The subjects were 216 university students (90 males, 126 females) from five universities in Gwangju, who were recruited through proportional stratified sampling.A self-report survey was conducted.A χ 2 -test, Student's t-test, and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were performed using SPSS 25.0.Female students were often living with parents (P=0.019) and showed lower scores of diversity (P=0.001),moderation (P=0.026), and dietary behavior (P=0.008) in the nutrition quotient (NQ) compared to male students (P=0.000).The effect of gender was adjusted, and dormitory students had significantly lower balance scores in the NQ than students living with parents (P=0.003).Students living with parents had a lower moderation ability over sweets (P=0.004) and a higher level of picky eating (P=0.032).The students living apart or in the dormitory consumed less fruit (P=0.000) and frequently skipped breakfast (P=0.001).In particular, students living in the dormitory consumed fewer eggs (P=0.039) and had a lower moderation ability over sweets (P=0.004).This study identified potential nutritional problems according to the university students' residence types, and intervention strategies were suggested.