Faculty Publications

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

January 2010

Publication Title

Journal of American College Health

Volume

59

Issue Number

3

First Page

205

Last Page

210

DOI

10.1080/07448481.2010.502203

Keywords

faculty and staff, food choices, obesity, university

Disciplines

Food Science | Nutrition

Abstract

Objective: In order to address increasing health care costs associated with obesity, this study sought to determine prevalence of overweight and obesity and examine eating behaviors, food choices, health beliefs, and attitudes of university employees. Participants and Methods: An online survey was distributed to > 3,800 faculty and staff at a large public metropolitan university in Winter 2008. Results: Almost half (48%) of 806 respondents were classified as overweight or obese. Compared to those with normal weights, overweight and obese respondents consumed fewer fruits and vegetables (p < .05), were less confident in making healthful food choices (p < .001), and were more influenced by food choices available in on-campus dining facilities (p < .05). Conclusions: Obesity among university employees warrants attention. Because these employees have less self-efficacy and consume less healthful diets than their normal weight colleagues, universities need to improve on-campus access to healthful foods.

Comments

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article whose final and definitive form, the Version of Record, has been published in Journal of American College Health, 2010 in Volume 59, Issue 3. Find the published version of this article at this link.
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