Nutrition knowledge in students of a nursing school

Introduction: Nutrition is an issue of great academic and public importance. However, there is evidence that medical professionals have serious deficits in their nutrition knowledge Purpose: It was to assess the nutrition knowledge of a nursing student’s sample, regarding to their semester class and to some socioeconomic features. Material and Method: Five hundred and six students of a Nursing School were administered a closed- type questionnaire regarding their nutrition knowledge. Results: Three hundred and ninety six (78.3 %) of the students were women. Most students, 94. 7% (479), correctly answered that bad nutrition is a predisposing factor for chronic diseases. Three hundred and twelve did not know that 30 gr of wheat bread give less calories than 30 gr of wheat rusk. Most students were familiar with Mediterranean dietary pyramid (n=346, 68.4 %).Most students 60,7% (307) believe that eating two eggs daily results in a dangerous increase in blood cholesterol level in healthy individuals . The BodyMassIndex was known to 331 students ( 65.4%) and its knowledge was statistically related to the semester of studies. Conclusions: Several limitations in nursing students’ knowledge were recorded. The improvement of nutrition knowledge would contribute to the adoption of healthy dietary habits by both medical professionals and general public.

Author(s): Yfanti Eleni

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