Author : Michele L. Andrush
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 26 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (131 download)
Book Synopsis The Impact of Stress on Food Intake and Selection by : Michele L. Andrush
Download or read book The Impact of Stress on Food Intake and Selection written by Michele L. Andrush and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this study was to evaluate how stress affects a person's food intake and food choices and to inform the subjects of the ramifications of poor eating habits over a prolonged period. The goal was to enable individuals to be better informed when making food choices, especially when stress or stressful situations may influence those choices. The subjects involved in this study were Caucasian females, with varying ethnic backgrounds, age and with at least a college degree. The instruments used in this project include a food record, which was designed for this project, Nutritionist Pro software to evaluate the food records and a questionnaire, "Does Stress Affect Your Eating Habits?" which assigns a point value and based on the tallied results evaluates how stress may be affecting the subject's eating habits. The food record that was developed for this study collected basic information such as the foods eaten at each meal, including portion size, the time the meal was eaten and the amount of water consumed in that day. Also included in the food record was the perceived level of stress the individual experienced at the time the meal was eaten. The subject's answers to the questionnaire and food journals were collected after one week and evaluated nutritionally, using the program Nutritionist Pro. These results were used when discussing dietary modifications with the subject. At that time, subjects were provided with educational materials provided by the American Heart Association regarding effects of stress on eating and tips for more healthy food choices. The initial data were evaluated and presented back to the subjects. The effects of stress on eating habits and the potential health problems that may develop as a result of prolonged dietary problems, such as hypertension, were also discussed with the subjects. All the participants, based on their scores from the pretest, believed that stress did affect their eating habits. The average score recorded for the pretest, Does Stress Affect Your Eating Habits?, was 45 which, according to the pretest evaluation, required the subjects to reevaluate their diet. After the intervention with each of the participants, the test Does Stress Affect Your Eating Habits? and food diaries were also evaluated. Depending on the subject, at times the meals associated with a higher stress were a higher caloric value; other times caloric intake was minimal. The evaluation of the food records showed another interesting finding. For both the pre-intervention and post-intervention results, the average for the intake of fat for the subjects was extremely low, the normal average being around 30% fat for most Americans. For this program, the data that was collected did not show a significant change after the intervention. The intervention should be restructured in order to obtain more data. For future programs it is recommended that a larger more diverse population be enrolled. This includes considering different ethnic backgrounds, religious backgrounds, socioeconomic backgrounds and educational backgrounds. In this study, consideration was not given to these varieties of backgrounds. The results could be considered bias to a certain population, that being Caucasian women from a higher socioeconomic class and with similar educational backgrounds. It would also be highly recommended to extend the period of evaluation for future studies. By extending the period of evaluation, trends could be noted in eating patterns and followed in more detail. Based on the principles of adult learning it would also be advised to research and evaluate how the intervention would be best applied to the subjects enrolling in the study. Availability of resources needs to be considered along with work habits to evaluate the best timeframe in which to conduct this study.
