A research on the determination of fish consumption habits of high school students receiving education in the Aegean Region

In this thesis study it is aimed to determine fish consumption behaviors of students receiving education in five different types of secondary education institutions/high schools (AIHL, AL, CPAL, FL and MTAL) in eight provinces in the Aegean Region and to determine how effective the factors such as gender, number of household members, parent education/occupational status, family economic level, different school types, different cities, different diet styles, habits (customs-tradition) and nutrition education are on these behaviors. The data of the study were obtained by random sampling method between November 2017 and April 2018 by applying a questionnaire form by the researcher with face-to-face interview method on a voluntary basis with 7253 students. Statistical analysis of the data was performed using the IBM SPSS 20.0 statistical package program. Relationships between variables were determined with Chi-square. Chi-square (χ²), degrees of freedom (sd) and statistical significance (p) results obtained as a result of these tests, and frequency (n) and percent (%) distributions of the data were calculated, and the findings were presented in figures and tables. Whether there was a statistically significant relationship between the variables was interpreted and reported. The p value is to be determined to be less than 0.05. 48.53% of the 7253 students who participated in the survey were girl students and 51.47% were boy students, and it was determined that the ages of these students varied between 13-20, their height between 110-205 cm, and their weight between 30-133 kg. The provinces where students participated were determined as Afyonkarahisar with 8.22%, Aydın with 10.48%, Denizli with 10.42%, İzmir with 35.68%, Kütahya with 7.20%, Manisa with 13.99%, 8%, Muğla with 60 and Uşak with 5.40%. 9.90% of the students continue their education in AIHL, 36.07% in AL, 9.73% in CPAL, 9.06% in FL and 34.24% in MTAL. It was determined that 87.04% of the students preferred fish consumption. The fish consumption amount of students was calculated as 8.94 kg/year on average per capita. Among the reasons for consuming fish, it was determined that the most common reason for students to consume fish was "for a balanced and healthy diet" with 47.31%, the most common reason for students not consuming fish was because of its "smell" with 52.46%, the first association that comes to mind when talking about fish was "anchovy" with 57.35%, the most common way of purchasing and consumption of fish was "fresh" with 96.80%, the most common criterion for understanding the freshness of the fish was "eye investigation" with 45.70%, the most preferred method for purchasing fish was "from district (public) bazaar" with 60.43% and most preferred fish was "anchovy" with 80.19%, most preferred method for cooking fish was "frying" with 86.41%, they generally consume fish "at home" with 95.48% and when their thoughts about fish consumption was asked they mostly answered "it is important for health" with 62.18%. It was determined that the students consumed mostly hunting fish with a rate of 77.96%, and culture fish with a minimum rate of 2.57%, according to the production method. While there was no statistically significant relationship between the gender of the students and the fish consumption status (p=0.127) and the frequency of fish consumption (p=0.267), a significant relationship was found between the reasons for preferring fish consumption (p<0.001). A statistically significant relationship was found between the number of individuals living in the families of the students and the fish consumption status (p<0.001) and the frequency of fish consumption (p=0.019). A statistically significant relationship was found between the average monthly income of the families of students and their fish consumption status (p<0.001), the frequency of fish consumption (p<0.001), the reasons for preferring fish consumption (p=0.003) and the fish production group they prefer to consume (p=0.003). A statistically significant relationship was found between the average monthly income of the families of the students and the comparison of the prices of fish and other meat species (p<0.001). A statistically significant relationship was found between the education of students on nutrition and the frequency of fish consumption (p=0.021). A statistically significant relationship was found between the provinces where the students live in metropolitan/non-metropolitan cities and the frequency of fish consumption (p=0.037). A statistically significant was found between the coastal/non-coastal provinces where the students live and the frequency of fish consumption (p=0.001). According to the results of our study, the main factors that negatively affect the fish consumption of the students are that they do not receive adequate basic education in nutrition, the fish purchasing/consumption power of large families is low, the fish has bones, the consumption culture of processed fish is insufficient, the smell and aroma of the fish disturb the consumers, the places that cook and sell fish are insufficient. The factors that positively affect fish consumption; the economic purchasing power of families and educational status being high, the number of household members being low, habits, knowing the importance of fish in healthy nutrition, having received training in nutrition, residing in a metropolitan or coastal province. In fact, we can say that perspectives of students towards fish consumption are positive. In this context, canned or cooked fish should be sold to students in school canteens/cafeterias in order to reinforce the fish consumption habits of the students in the future. Students should be informed about the importance of fish/seafood consumption for a healthy and quality life and awareness should be raised.