Date of Graduation

5-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Human Nutrition and Hospitality Innovation

Advisor/Mentor

Becnel, Jennifer Nicole

Committee Member

Whitehead-Adams, Isabel Maria

Second Committee Member

Seo, Han-Seok

Abstract

The prevalence of disordered eating is a critical public health concern that often progresses towards the development of a diagnosable eating disorder (ED). This, in turn, has detrimental physical and psychological consequences for individuals. Organizations such as the American Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (ASPEN) and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) have recognized nutrition education as a crucial component of prevention and recovery. Determining the extent to which nutrition knowledge is related to risk factors for EDs is worth investigating due to its implications for healthcare approaches – especially among adolescent and young adult populations. The goal of this research was to collect data regarding the nutritional knowledge and eating disorder risk levels of non-nutrition undergraduate students between the ages of 18-29 and to identify associations between the two variables. When filtered for eligible responses, 156 participants completed the survey. Overall, findings indicated disordered eating as not being related to nutrition knowledge, although when reviewing our female-only sample, a trend was found for a decrease in eating disorder risk levels as nutrition knowledge in the measured "health management" subcategory increased. Further research exploring the relationship will be necessary for clarifying outcomes among larger samples.

Keywords

nutrition; eating disorder; disordered eating; college student; nutrition knowledge; University of Arkansas

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