Determining the quality of life, body cathexis and nutrition status of the university students

DETERMINING THE QUALITY OF LIFE, BODY CATHEXIS AND NUTRITION STATUS OF THE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS Nowadays, the number of individuals who suffer from malnutrition or poor nutrition is rapidly increasing. In particular, it is seen that university students exhibit negative eating attitudes or behaviors such as skipping meals or consuming read-to-eat foods. Changes in eating habits encountered during this period also affect students' post-university life. Nutritional disorders can cause physiological and psychological problems. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the quality of life, body cathexis and nutritional status of the university students. The research was conducted on 383 students studying at the Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University during the 2017-2018 Spring term. Demographic information form, Body Cathexis Scale (BCS), Eating Attitude Test (EAT-36), Survey of Eating Habits, and Quality of Life Scale (SF-36) were applied to the students. Statistical methods were used to evaluate the data collected from the scales and to determine the relationships between them. 40.2% of the students were males and 59.8% were females. It was determined that 48.8% of the students do not have three meals a day and mostly skip breakfast. It was detected that 57.1% of the students who skip meals most are obese according to Body Mass Index. It was seen that 32.0% of the students do not consume any snacks. It was observed that 97.1% of the students in the research group have lower body cathexis and female students had higher eating habits score than male students. It was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between students' eating disorder behavior scores and faculties and departments. In conclusion, it will be useful to conduct more comprehensive studies on the investigation of other factors that may be related to body cathexis, quality of life and nutrition status. Trainings should be given in order to provide healthy eating habits to university students. In this way, body cathexis and quality of life levels can be increased. Key Words: Body Cathexis, Eating, Life Quality