Abstract

ANDRADE, Adriana de Oliveira; CHEVALLIER, María Carolina  and  CALLE, Mariana Cecilia. Calcium intake and its influencing factors in Nutrition students from the University of Buenos Aires. Diaeta [online]. 2012, vol.30, n.141, pp.7-15. ISSN 1852-7337.

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate calcium dietary intake and attitudes/behaviors toward calcium dietary sources in nutrition students (178 women, between 19 and 30 years old) at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Food frequency questionnaires and semi- structured questionnaires were used to assess calcium intake and barriers for calcium intake respectively. Calcium intake was 977.25 ±455.89 mg/; however 40% of participants were below the Estimated Average Requirement (EAR) of 800mg/d and only 2% of the participants reported calcium supplement use. Mann-Whitney, ANOVA and Spearman's Rho tests were used for the statistical analysis. For those participants who reported barriers toward calcium sources, aversion to dairy (13%) and preference for other beverages (11%), specifically mate (an infusion), were the most frequent. Drinking milk for breakfast (r= 0.28; p<0.001) or for an afternoon snack (r= 0.20; p=0.008), was positively associated with calcium intake; whereas drinking mate for breakfast (r= -0.32; p<0.001) or for an afternoon snack (r= -0.24; p=0.001) was inversely associated with calcium intake, as well as having preference for other types of beverage (r= -0.17; p=0.026). The habit of drinking infusions, principally mate, replacing dairy, was the main barrier for calcium intake. When choosing what to take, the Argentinian custom of drinking mate was stronger for students than the academic knowledge acquired. In this population, strategies to increase calcium consumption targeting dietary habits are needed.

Keywords : Calcium intake; University students; Eating habits; Mate.

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