Running head: THE EFFECTS OF ACADEMICS ON EATING HABITS

The Effects of Academics on Eating Habits in First-Year Graduate Students

Tonya DeDera, Gifty Frimpong, Melody Klatt, and Jennifer Tom
Touro University Nevada

THE EFFECTS OF ACADEMICS ON EATING HABITS

Introduction
The subject of eating habits among college students is a topic that has been researched
frequently over recent years. As times goes on, studies continue to be encouraged by statistics
such as those quoted in articles that are hosted on the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention
website, some of which state that at least 3 in 10 college students are now overweight or obese
(Sparling, 2007). Studies have been conducted to examine the way that an individuals eating
habits may be influenced by responsibilities, schedules, and stress that college students often
have as part of their lives. Results of some studies vary, but due to the fact that a significant
number of students within these studies reported that their eating habits suffer as a result of their
lifestyle in college, increasing awareness about this fact may help to promote more conscious,
healthier eating habits among college students who struggle with this tendency.
The purpose of the qualitative study that we conducted was to describe the effects of
academics on eating habits for first-year graduate students in the 2016 cohort of Touro
University Nevadas Occupational Therapy program. We began by formulating our research
question, which asks: How would the students of Touro University Nevadas 2016 Occupational
Therapy cohort describe the impact of their academic responsibilities on their eating habits? We
interviewed members of the 2016 cohort to acquire their individual perceptions regarding their
eating habits and influences on their food choices and meal schedules, and we identified
common themes based on these reports. In this paper we will discuss the process of the study
and the nature and implications of the data that we gathered.
Literature Review
To search for information that had already been gathered about our research topic, we
conducted a literature review and found four articles that related to the research question that we

THE EFFECTS OF ACADEMICS ON EATING HABITS

formulated. We were interested to find that the first two articles provided evidence that went
against the assumption that students in college tend to have unhealthier eating habits in
comparison to nonstudents, and suggested instead that students may actually be more mindful
about what they eat. This broadened our expectations for the possible results of our study, as we
began to consider that we may receive more reports of healthy eating habits from some students
than we had originally anticipated.
The first article, entitled Ways Young Adults View Foods, focused on the perspectives of
undergraduate students, graduate students, and nonstudents on the relationship of food to
physical, social, financial, and health-related concerns (Betty, Amos, Keim, Peters, & Stewart,
1997). According to the reports from the participants, convenience trumped over nutritional
values for many students (Betty et al., 1997). However, for graduate students in particular,
nutritional values were reported to be more important than the cost of food (Betty et al., 1997).
The majority of nonstudents, in addition, valued how much they liked the food over the
nutritional value of it (Betty et al., 1997). Similarly, in the second article that we reviewed
which was entitled Among Young Adults, College Students and Graduates Practiced More
Healthful Habits and Made More Healthful Choices than Did Nonstudents results of the study
also produced evidence to support that college students and young adults in graduate school tend
to follow healthier diet practices than nonstudents (Georgiou, Betts, Hoerr, Keim, Peters,
Stewart, & Voichick, 1997). The authors of the study reported more health risks and maladaptive
behaviors associated to nonstudents in comparison to participants who were attending school
(Georgiou et al., 1997). The study also reported an interesting fact regarding the women in the
study, who regardless of student status reportedly did not consume adequate vegetables and
dairy products (Georgiou et al., 1997).

THE EFFECTS OF ACADEMICS ON EATING HABITS

The third article that we reviewed had to do with identifying a particular kind of
influence on college students eating habits. Conclusions regarding the overall healthy or
unhealthy tendencies of the students eating habits were not a focus of the study, but the data still
related to our research in the fact that it explored a possible factor that can influence a college
students food choices and meal routines. The article - entitled Comparison of College Students
Current Eating Habits and Recollections of Their Childhood Food Practices - discussed how
college students perceive the changes in their eating habits that have occurred over time;
particularly concerning their eating habits in college versus what their eating habits were as
children (Branen & Fletcher, 1999). In the study, emphasis was placed on the conclusion that a
students eating habits in college may be influenced by what their feeding experiences were as
children (Branen & Fletcher, 1999). Influences from feeding practices by caregivers in the
participants childhood were reportedly carried over in ways such as regularly having dessert,
eating regularly scheduled meals, and using food as an incentive (Branen & Fletcher, 1999).
This information provided a basis for one of our interview questions, which had to do with
asking participants about factors in their lives that they believe may influence their food choices.
The fourth and final article, entitled Perceived Effects of Stress on Food Choice,
formulated conclusions that opposed those from the first and second articles. The study involved
212 students who answered a questionnaire that addressed how stress impacted their eating
habits and food choices (Oliver & Wardle, 1998). The authors found that students in the study
reported consuming more snacks and less meal-type foods during times when they experienced
more stress (Oliver & Wardle, 1998). This was seen despite differences in diet status, and in
both males and females (Oliver & Wardle, 1998). These conclusions correlated with the

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assumption that stress and lifestyle influences may lead to unhealthy eating habits in college
students, and helped us to further develop the priori codes for our own research.
Methodology
The participants for our study were recruited from the 2016 Occupational Therapy cohort
from Touro University Nevada and were in their first year of the graduate program. Of the six
participants, three were male and three were female, and ages ranged from 22 to 42. Interviews
were conducted with each participant individually to obtain the research data, and verbal consent
was obtained prior to the commencement of each interview. Participants were interviewed in a
quiet study room at the university during lunch hours, between the hours of 12 PM and 1 PM,
with one researcher acting as the interviewer and one researcher acting as the transcriber. The
interviewer asked six open-ended questions, and data were collected by transcribing the
participants answers by typing out the responses on a laptop. There were no participants who
dropped out from the interviews. After all the data were collected from each of the participants,
researchers read through the transcripts to code for similar themes. To validate the findings,
member checking was conducted by emailing the participants their individual transcripts to
review and, and they were encouraged to report any discrepancies. In addition, triangulation the process of increasing the validity of the findings by cross-verification - was used by having
all the researchers read through the transcripts and agree upon the coded themes. The
participants names were changed in the interest of confidentiality, and they will be addressed by
these names in our results.
Results
For our qualitative research study, we established three priori codes prior to conducting
the study, and two other codes (sub-themes) emerged after we reviewed the transcripts from the

THE EFFECTS OF ACADEMICS ON EATING HABITS

interviews with the participants. The three priori codes that were established included themes of
money, stress, and lack of time, though only two of these codes stress and lack of time were
identified as prevalent themes in the interviews. Two emergent sub-themes were also identified,
and these included unhealthier eating habits after starting the program, and trying to stay
healthy despite academic responsibility.
Money
One of the priori codes that we established before conducting the study had to do with
money. Due to the fact that college students are often known to have limited funds because of
the cost of attending college and the lack of time to work (particularly for graduate students), we
predicted that money would be reported by the participants as a major contributing factor to their
eating habits. However, we found that none of the participants mentioned during their interviews
that money was a factor that influenced their food choices or meal schedules.
Stress
The next proposed priori code that became a prominent theme in our study was stress.
Every participant, by some means, reported that stress was something that they struggled with,
though not every participant reported that their eating habits suffered significantly because of it.
Greg reported that he consumes soda and various types of candy as a result of stress, and he
confirmed that the stress was caused by the demands of the academic program that he is part of.
During the interviews, two out of the three female students expressed that stress was detrimental
to their eating habits. Tricia reported: Anxiety and stress are the main things that contribute to
my meal choices. I usually eat more when Im extremely stressed. Molly, in turn, made the
following report: For me, I tend to get super stressed during exams, and when I get stressed I
tend to skip meals, usually lunch. But when Im bored I eat more food. These reports correlate

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with research and assumptions that focus on the fact that academic responsibility can have a
negative impact on students eating habits.
Lack of Time
The final priori code and second major theme that was established for our study was lack
of time. We predicted that the participants would report having a limited amount of free time as
one of the main factors that impact their food choices and meal schedules, and during the
interviews, we found this to be true based on the reports from the students. Time was the factor
that was most consistently discussed among the participants in regards to issues that influence
their eating habits.
Prior to attending the Occupational Therapy graduate program at Touro University, Greg
reported that he had been on a gluten-free diet; however, due to time constraints, he was unable
to maintain this diet regime. He made the following statement to elaborate on this fact:
I skip breakfast half the time because I just have to get up and go. On weekdays, I
need to be in class by 8 AM, so I dont have - you know - the time to sit with my
family and eat a healthy breakfast, so I usually just bring an apple with me in the
morning and eat during class.
Steve stated that because of the time he is required to spend on completion of
assignments for the academic program, he never has time to cook dinner when he goes home
after classes. Because of this, he reported: I prepare my food on Sunday for the whole week.
Matt stated that because of the demands of the program, he finds that he does not have the time
to go grocery shopping for complex meals during the weekdays. As a result, he tends to eat
processed meals instead of fresh vegetables and more wholesome meals. Molly added: Not
having a lot of time is a big deal because most Kosher restaurants are 20 minutes away, and
thats a big part of what I eat. Tricia discussed that efficiency was a key factor in her food

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choices due to time constraints. She stated that because of the limited amount of free time she
has, she prefers to have her meals prepared as quickly as possible, so she will often get food from
a drive-thru restaurant as a result. Lastly, Diana stated that most of the time her school lunches
are leftovers from a previous days dinner in the interest of saving time. She continued with the
following statement: For dinner I will usually have something fast and easy if I am cooking,
you know like Trader Joes throw-it-in-the-oven type of meal.
Unhealthier Eating Habits after Starting the Program
One of the sub-themes that emerged after we reviewed the interview transcripts stemmed
from the fact that several participants mentioned that they felt their eating habits had become
unhealthier after starting in the graduate program. As stated previously, Greg reported that he
abandoned a healthier diet regime after he began attending classes in the program. Diana
reported that she considers herself to be a healthy eater, but due to the demands of her academics,
she is rarely able to go grocery shopping with her boyfriend. This is an issue for her, as she
reported that her boyfriend tends to eat anything and does not always make healthy food
choices. She made the following statement:
I really try to eat healthy, so I try to lean towards that side when I go grocery
shopping and try to stay away from the non-healthy foods, in order to have good
choices at home. Since I started in the program, my boyfriend does all the
grocery shopping and that throws it all off sometimes.
Steve offered another reason for his change in diet, making the following statement:
Studying makes me stay up late and Im usually not really hungry, but I need the energy to stay
up to finish assignments, so I look for anything in the house to munch on, like chips, because its
easy. Tricia also offered unique insight from her own experience, stating that she struggles with

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her diet partially due to the fact that she does not know how to cook. She made the following
statement in regards to this: Im still not cooking at home. I spend more money at restaurants
and fast food places, to be honest.
Trying to Stay Healthy Despite Academic Responsibility
A second sub-theme that emerged after reviewing the data was focused on the fact that
several participants mentioned that they actively try and maintain healthy eating habits despite
the weight of academic responsibility in the graduate program. They mentioned that staying
healthy is very important to them, and even if eating healthy has become more difficult after
starting in the graduate program, they still make sure to eat as healthily as possible. This theme
correlated with some of the conclusions that other studies indicated, regarding the fact that some
research shows that certain college students keep to a goal of eating healthy despite academic
responsibility. Steve shared that his New Years resolution was to refrain from eating sweets,
and his long term goal was to one day take part in a physique competition. Diana stated that,
since she does not consider herself to be a very good cook, she goes out to restaurants to eat with
her boyfriend, and they try to make healthy food choices when they are there. She made the
following statement in regards to this:
During the weekends are the times I have outside of my schedule to spend time with my
boyfriend. When we go out to restaurants, while my boyfriend is scarfing down his
burger and fries, I try to be a bit more health-conscious by ordering something like soup
and a sandwich.
Significance and Implications
The results of our study showed evidence to support the fact that academic responsibility
for graduate students can have a significant impact on their eating habits. Most of the

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participants mentioned that they struggle with gravitating towards unhealthy food choices due to
lack of time or stress caused by their academic responsibilities. Several reported that they often
resort to fast food or processed food during times of stress or when they simply need a meal that
is quick, efficient, and easy in the interest of saving time. Several of the participants supported
two of the studies that we included in our literature review by stating that they manage to be
relatively health-conscious despite the pressures of their academic responsibilities, but even they
reported that stress and lack of time often challenge their eating habits. These facts are important
to consider both for college students and for professionals who advise college students as they
battle with the stress and pressures of higher academic demands, as an increased awareness
regarding these facts can provide potential for prevention and improvement among college
students who may struggle with maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
Limitations
One of the significant limitations of our study was the fact that the participants were
recruited solely from the Occupational Therapy program of one university, which makes it
difficult to assess whether the themes we identified were exclusive to students in this program or
if these themes would also be present in other disciplines from other schools. Another limitation
was the fact that we, the researchers, knew the participants personally as classmates, which may
have influenced the way that the participants answered some of the interview questions. We also
noted after the interviewing process that some of the interview questions were not specific
enough to garner more in-depth answers from the participants, which made it difficult to analyze
more of the underlying factors that may have contributed to the participants eating habits.
Recommendations

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After concluding our study, there are several recommendations that we proposed for
future research in regards to this topic. One recommendation includes creating more specific
questions when interviewing participants, if possible, so that more specific and in-depth answers
may be gathered and analyzed. We attempted to ensure that our questions were very open-ended
in the interest of encouraging a variety of answers, but it may have been helpful to formulate the
questions in such a way that they more specifically pertained to our priori codes (i.e. How do
you believe money impacts your food choices?).
A second recommendation would be to conduct this study with participants from more
than one program and more than one university, because this study consisted solely of
occupational therapy students from the same class in a single school, and the results of the study
may be biased or less generalizable because of this. We also recommend that future studies
consider comparing data between accelerated and non-accelerated graduate programs to see if
any significant difference exists between the themes that may be reported under that premise.
Lastly, we recommend that the researchers in any future study do not harbor a personal
relationship with any of the participants to further prevent the possibility of bias or insincere
reports.
Conclusion
This study explored the effects of academics on eating habits for six first-year graduate
students in the Occupational Therapy program at Touro University Nevada. The participants
were individually interviewed and themes of stress and lack of time were found to be main
influences on their eating habits. Two emergent sub-themes were also identified, stemming from
the fact that several participants reported that their eating habits had become unhealthier after
starting in their academic program, and several participants reported that they actively try to

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maintain a healthy lifestyle despite their academic responsibilities. The results from this study
may help to promote awareness of issues that can negatively impact graduate students eating
habits, and may help to encourage future research on treatment strategies that can address those
issues.

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References
Betty, N. M., Amos, R. J., Keim, K., Peters, P., & Stewart, B. (1997). Ways young adults view
foods. Journal of Nutrition Education, 29(2), 73-79.
Branen, L. & Fletcher, J. (1999). Comparison of college students current eating habits and
recollections of their childhood food practices. Journal of Nutrition Education, 31(6),
304-310.
Georgiou, C. C., Betts, N. M., Hoerr, S. I., Keim, K, Peters, P. K., Stewart, B., & Voichick, J.
(1997). Among young adults, college students and graduates practiced more healthful
habits and made more healthful food choices than did nonstudents. Journal of the
American Dietetic Association, 97(7), 754-759.
Oliver, G., Wardle, J. (1998). Perceived effects of stress on food choice. Physiology & Behavior,
66(3), 511-515.
Sparling, P. B. (2007). Obesity on campus. Preventing Chronic Disease, 4(3). Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2007/jul/06_0142.htm.

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Appendix A
Interview Questions

What does your meal schedule during a school week typically entail?

During a school day, what types of food do you usually eat between meals, if any?

Describe the kind of food you typically eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

How do you believe your eating habits have changed since starting the occupational
therapy program?

What do you believe influences your food choices?

How do your eating habits during the school week differ from your eating habits on the
weekend?

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