Assessment of Nutritional Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Among Allied Health Sciences Students

Background: Nutrition is fundamental to health promotion and disease prevention. Allied Health Sciences students are expected to possess adequate nutritional knowledge and adopt healthy dietary behaviors. However, deficiencies in nutrition literacy and eating practices remain common. Objective: To assess nutritional knowledge, attitudes, and dietary practices among Allied Health Sciences students in Peshawar, Pakistan, and examine the relationships among these domains. Methodology: This analytical cross-sectional study included 200 AHS students from various institutes in Peshawar, selected through convenience sampling. Data on demographic characteristics, nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and dietary behaviors were obtained using a structured questionnaire. Body mass index was calculated following WHO recommendations. Continuous variables are presented as mean ± standard deviation, whereas categorical variables are reported as frequencies and percentages. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to examine the relationships among nutritional knowledge, attitudes, and dietary practices. Results: Participants had a mean age of 24.11±1.25 years and a mean BMI of 24.89±3.46 kg/m². Correct responses were highest for milk and bone health (100%) and excessive sugar intake causing diabetes (84%). Lower awareness was observed regarding iodized salt (33.5%), dietary fiber (44.5%), and carotene as a source of vitamin A (14%). Most students recognized the importance of fruits and vegetables (88%) and regular meals (98.5%), although misconceptions about beverages persisted. Frequent consumption of soft drinks (79.5%) and fried snacks (81.5%) was also reported. Nutritional knowledge showed a weak positive correlation with attitude (r=0.2, p<0.01) and a weak negative correlation with dietary practices (r= -0.157, p<0.05), whereas attitude was not significantly associated with dietary practices (r=0.061, p>0.05). Conclusion: AHS students demonstrated satisfactory nutritional knowledge, but important misconceptions and unhealthy dietary behaviors remained. Incorporating practical nutrition education and behavior-focused interventions into AHS curricula may help improve dietary practices and better prepare future healthcare professionals.