Falcuty of English

ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

Student full name and ID number:

NGUYỄN NGUYÊN THỤC ÁI - 2057012017

Unit code: NN287 – EL201C Unit title: Academic Writing

Assignment title:
How dietary patterns can affect university students’ wellness and their
academic performance at school?

Name of lecturer: NGUYỄN PHƯỚC BÍCH HẰNG

Student Contact Telephone No./ Student Email Address:

Date submitted: 30/08/2022
2057012017ai@ou.edu.vn

Plagiarism and Collusion

Plagiarism is a practice that involves the
using of another person’s intellectual
output and presenting it as one’s own.
This includes the presentation of work
that has been copied, in whole or part,
from other sources (including other
students’ works, published books or
periodicals, or unpublished works or
unauthorized collaboration with other
persons), without due acknowledgement.
Consequences of Plagiarism and
Collusion
A student found guilty of plagiarism will
be subject to some of the following:
 Issuing of written warning
 Submission of new work for assessment
 Allocation a fail grade to all of the
assessment

STUDENT DECLARATION

I declare that this assignment is original and has not been submitted for assessment
elsewhere.
I declare that this assignment is my own work and does not involve plagiarism or collusion.
I give my consent for the electronic version to be examined by relevant plagiarism software
programs.
I have made an electronic copy of my assignment, which I can produce if the original is lost
for any reason.

Signed by the student: Ái Date: 30/08/2022

 Abstract

Research has shown that there has been a correlation between dietary intake and

human development, in terms of physical and cognitive aspects. This is absolutely

significant for first-year university students, who have to be accustomed to an entirely

new academic environment and mode of life. The aim of this paper project has

therefore been to try to develop an understanding of the beneficial influences of

healthy food choices on students’ health as well as the adverse effects of consuming

unwholesome products on their bodies. Additionally, this paperwork focuses on how

these effects can establish a possible link with the results of students’ academic

performance at university. Finally, at the end of this research, practicable solutions are

suggested with an attempt to motivate the undergraduates to follow the approaches

that are the most advantageous to their improvement and learning achievement.

Keywords: healthy food, unwholesome food, effects, unversity students,

academic performance
Introduction and Background

In a tertiary-level environment, students are highly required to not only enrich their
knowledge relating to the major, but also master necessary skills so as to be able to
attain higher academic results, since academic success possibly has significant
influences on the lives of students (Şahin, Çekin, & Yazıcılar Özçelik, 2018).
Therefore, considerable research is conducted to discover what factors can boost the
productivity of undergraduate students to help them achieve their goals. Scientifically,
it has been shown that a proper diet is one of the critical contributions to that.

According to Sprake et al. (2018), dietary practices vary among students, from
healthy-promoting diets to unhealthful eating habits. In terms of healthy diets,
Hillman, Erickson and Kramer (2008), Francis and Stevenson (2013), as cited in
Deliens et al. (2013), proved that high-quality diets, usually including a low
proportion of harmful fats and sugar, have beneficial effects on the human cognitive
system. However, in recent years, while many students adhere to a health-conscious
dietary behavior, a large number of them have been reported to have unfavorable
transitions to food consumption (Sprake, et al., 2018). More specifically, Sprake et al.
mentioned that students have a tendency towards overconsumption of confectionery
and fast foods as well as alcohol and sugar, and low intakes of fruit and vegetables.
One explanation is that “the transition to university life may be associated with
increased autonomy over food choice, small food budgets, and exposure to new social
groups and food cultures”. With this poor quality diets of students, Sprake et al.
worried that there would be “potential implications for body weight and long-term
health” (2018, p. 90).

This study focuses on providing insight into the effects of healthy and unhealthy diets
on students’ wellness bodily and psychologically, which results in academic success
at school, and proposes advice to help them raise awareness of wholesome dietary
patterns.

Positive impacts of healthy food choices

A healthy dietary pattern is believed to play an important role in students’ health

physically and psychologically. Based on the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating
(Smith, Kellett, & Schmerlaib, 1998), there are five core food groups, including:
1. Bread, cereals, rice, pasta, noodles
2. Vegetables, legumes
3. Fruit
4. Milk, yoghurt, cheese
5. Meat, fish, poultry, eggs, nuts, legumes.
It also indicates that “foods should be eaten from each food group every day” (1998,
p. 6) to meet the nutritional needs of the body. Lichtenstein et al. (2006), as cited in
Dan et al. (2014), recommended that individuals should follow a diet rich in fruits and
vegetables, “because it meets the micronutrient, macronutrient, and fiber requirements
without adding substantially to overall energy consumption” (Dan, Huang, Wang,
Zhang, & Qu, 2014, p. 1613). Moreover, consumption of whole-grain foods is
advocated in the study of Slavin et al., as they contain phytochemicals, that along with
other vitamins and minerals, perform vital functions in disease prevention (2001).
This is notably wholesome for university students’ somatic systems and potentially
guarantees the students decent health conditions to participate in school activities.

Additionally, research suggested that consuming a good and nutritious diet might
boost mental health (Jacka, et al., 2010), cognitive functions including focus and
memory (Gómez-Pinilla, 2008; Bellisle, 2004), and academic achievement (Burrows,
Goldman, Pursey, & Lim, 2016). Indeed, Bryan et al. note that iodine, iron, and folate
have been identified as crucial nutrients for cognitive development; additionally, other
minerals such as zinc, vitamin B12, and omega-3 may also be helpful (2004). These
minerals are specially packed in nuts and seeds, fatty fish, and organ meats. Hence,
having nutritious diets can help students’ brains operate better, allowing them to study
more productively, recall things more efficiently, and prevent other cognitive
problems (Healthy Meal, Happy Brain: How Diet Affects Brain Functioning, 2021).
This can positively result in providing the undergraduates with stable psychological
health, enhancing their learning and concentrating ability, and reducing mental issues
during examination periods at school.

How can unhealthy eating patterns detrimentally affect students’ health and
performance?

Although the majority of university students have good nutritional awareness, they
tend to adopt poor dietary habits, as mentioned by Yun et al. (2018), including
overconsumption of junk food (i.e. food that is high in saturated and trans fats and
refined sugar, calorie-dense and low in fibre) (Sprake, et al., 2018), high intake of
alcohol, sugary beverages, and caffeine in energy drinks (Deliens, Clarys,
Bourdeaudhuij, & Deforche, 2013), fruit and vegetable deficiencies, to name but a
few.

Fast foods typically contain excessive amounts of fats, carbohydrates, and sodium, as
well as “artificial sweeteners, salt, coloring agents, and other potentially disease-
promoting chemicals” (Fuhrman, 2018, p. 376). These substances, along with
abundant calories, contribute to metabolic complications, namely obesity and diabetes
(Fuhrman, 2018; Spencer, Korosi, Layé, Shukitt-Hale, & Barrientos, 2017).
Particularly, high contents of fats and sucrose in processed foods can have adverse
impacts on students’ cognition (Gómez-Pinilla, 2008): those having high intake of fats
displayed substantially slower information retrieval from working and episodic
memory and less focused attention when compared to those having regular intake
(Holloway, et al., 2011).
Besides, overconsumption of caffeine, alcohol and soft drink has been found to have
negative health conditions, including restlessness, insomnia, dehydration (Temple,
Bernard, Lipshultz, Czachor, Westphal, & Mestre , 2017), overweight, hypertension,
and constant headaches (Malinauskas, Aeby, Overton, Carpenter-Aeby, & Barber-
Heidal, 2007). World Health Organization also emphasizes that alcohol use weakens
the immune system, causing mental diseases (2018), such as depression, reduction in
concentrating ability, and learning and memory dysfunctions, suggesting that studying
progress can be adversely influenced.

Conclusions and Further Advice

This paper has reviewed the characterizations of dietary behaviors that are directly
associated with the wellness of college-aged students and their achievements at
school. To prevent students from the tendency of adopting unhealthful diets, greater
effort should be made by every individual. For instance, the university can establish a
school health council, supporting activities and policies relating to health education
(Story, Nanney, & Schwarts, 2009). More importantly, the students themselves need
to develop a higher sense of self-discipline and health-related alertness, as well as
adhere to proper food choices to attain decent health conditions, which contributes to
educational success in the future.

This assignment consists of 1000 words.

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