TITLE:
Cost and Calorie Analysis of Fast Food Consumption in College Students
AUTHORS:
Kimberly B. Heidal, Sarah E. Colby, Ginger T. Mirabella, Khalid S. Al-Numair, Brenda Bertrand, Kevin H. Gross
KEYWORDS:
Cost Analysis; Students; Health; Food; Energy Intake
JOURNAL NAME:
Food and Nutrition Sciences,
Vol.3 No.7,
July
2,
2012
ABSTRACT: The purpose of this research was to assess money spent and calories consumed by college students from fast food restaurants located on and around a southern college campus. A convenience sample (n = 152) of undergraduate college students (aged 18 - 24) at a southern university participated in a survey that measured dietary intake from seven local fast food chains using a researcher developed food frequency questionnaire and a lifestyle behavior survey that collected data on health practices. A strong positive correlation was found between total monthly fast food expense and total monthly fast food caloric consumption (r(150) = 0.94, p t test comparing the mean monthly fast food restaurant expense males to females found a significant difference between the two groups (t(150) = 4.19, p