Anthropometric Indices, Dietary Diversity Score and Fast Food Consumption among University Workers in Southeast Nigeria: A Cross-Sectional Study

Little is known about the anthropometric indices and dietary diversity score of fast food consumers. This study aims to assess the anthropometric indices, dietary diversity score (DDS) and fast food consumption among university workers in Southeast Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey of 250 workers selected through a 4-stage sampling technique was conducted. Data were obtained on height, weight, hip and waist circumference. Questionnaire provided information on socio-demographic characteristics, food frequency and 24hr dietary recall. Data was analyzed using Statistical Package for Service Solution (SPSS) version 23. Results were presented using frequency, percentages mean and standard deviation. Chi-square cross-tabulation and Pearson correlation were adopted to establish the association between variables. A p-value p<0.05 was considered to be significant in all statistical test. Results show that 48.8% of the respondents fell within the age range of 31-40 years. Almost all the respondents had attained tertiary education (78%). Almost half (49.2%) of the respondents earn ₦100,000-₦299,999 monthly. Majority (67%) reported eating one or more foods from a fast food restaurant in the past 7 days. Minority (9.6%) had a high waist-hip-ratio. Majority (58.8%) were overweight and obese. Female respondents, comprising approximately 54.4% of the population, had an average consumption of 5.00 food groups, while male respondents (44.6%) consumed an average of 4.83 food groups. There seems to be a significant association between body mass index (BMI) and DDS and BMI and fast food consumption (p<0.05). Normal BMI was associated with higher DDS and lesser fast food consumption.