The association between diet quality and mental health of university students : A cross-sectional study

Solomou, Solomis and Perez Algorta, Guillermo and Reilly, Siobhan and Logue, Jennifer and Robinson, Heather (2024) The association between diet quality and mental health of university students : A cross-sectional study. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

Background: University students are at risk of experiencing mental health problems during the transition from home to university. This transition can also adversely affect their diet quality. There is a research gap in terms of understanding the relationship between diet quality and mental health of university students during their transition to universities in the UK. Aim: This study aimed to examine the bidirectional associations regarding the influence of diet quality on the mental health of university students, and vice versa. It also aimed to examine the impact of the transition to university on diet quality and mental health of university students. Methods: The study adopted a cross-sectional design. The study took place during the first semester of the academic year 2021-2022. Participants were first year undergraduate students at Lancaster University, University College London (UCL), Queen Mary University London (QMUL), and King’s College London (KCL) living at student halls (university or private) for the first time. They were invited to participate by completing an online survey including a food frequency questionnaire, a mental health questionnaire, and a transition to university questionnaire. Findings: During the transition to university, a healthy diet of students was associated with better mental health in terms of depression, anxiety, and stress. Mental health issues experienced by university students were also associated with an unhealthy diet. A good quality of transition to university was associated with good mental health of students. Conclusion: There are implications for university policies and for health education research, as interventions to improve diet quality at the university level could reduce mental health issues; additionally, interventions to support students under stress may lead to healthier dietary habits when living on campuses. Further research including quasi-experimental studies, qualitative studies, longitudinal studies and intervention studies are needed to further investigate these implications