Assessing overweight, obesity, diet, and physical activity in college students

The authors surveyed 738 college students aged 18 to 27 years to assess overweight, obesity, dietary habits, and physical activity. They used BMI (body mass index) greater than or equal to 25 kg/m(2) or BMI greater than or equal to 85th percentile and BMI greater than or equal to 30 kg/m(2) or BMI greater than or equal to 95th percentile to estimate overweight and obesity in those aged 19 years. To define overweight and obesity in those greater than or equal to 20 years, they used BMI greater than or equal to 25 kg/m(2) and greater than or equal to 30 kg/m(2). They found overweight rates of 21.6% using BMI directly and 16.2% using BMI percentile and obesity rates of 4.9% using BMI directly and 4.2% using BMI percentile. More than 69% of the participants reported < 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day and more than 67% reported < 20 g of fiber per day; participants reported physical activity on fewer than 3 d/wk. Most college students are not meeting dietary and physical activity guidelines, suggesting the need for prevention interventions and increased understanding of overweight in college students.