Dietetics students' opinion on food and their future profession

Introduction: Although it is believed that dietitians will use their opinions about food in their professional practice, few studies evaluated conceptions about food and health among dietitians, and this evaluation could be useful for understanding university education and thinking about possible professional implications. Methods: The study aimed to understand the role of food and what it means to be a dietitian from the perspective of Brazilian dietetics students (495 from 34 institutions in the state of São Paulo) through the questions, "What do you consider the main role of food?" and "For me, being a dietitian means...” The responses were analyzed with the support of AtlasTi software and codified into analytical categories based on content analysis. Results: Of the total, 93% were female and 20% were enrolled in public institutions. Two main categories were defined for food: biological and psycho-sociocultural aspects, and two for nutritionists: health promoter and integral health promoter; 69% indicated the function of food as only biological and 61,3% see the dietitian to be only a health promoter, considering only physiological aspects. Students from public institutions responded more for psycho-sociocultural aspects and integral health promotion (p<0.0001). Conclusion: Most participants present opinions about food in their professional practice focusing mainly on biological and physical health aspects. The possible impact of these opinions on professional practice should be discussed and addressed so that undergraduation can expand critical training and better professional practice.