Introduction
In early life, health-related behaviors influence risks for disorders that relate to an individual’s lifestyle (Mikolajczyk, El Ansari & Maxwell, 2009). Therefore, it is important to explore young people’s health behaviors. In this respect, university students present a suitable sample to identify the relationship between their health habits, BMI, and stress levels. 9.5% of college and university students in the U.S are obese, as they fall in the ≤30kg/m2 BMI, range while 21.9% fall in the ≤25kg/m2 range, which signifies that they are overweight (Huang et a., 2010). International college students pursuing their undergraduate studies in the US tend to be overwhelmed by the new environment and lifestyles, which results in stress among them. In the US, “35% of the college students are obese or overweight” (Franz & Feresu, 2013, p. 10). This assertion implies that these students have adopted lifestyles that are detrimental to their health (Wardle, Haase & Steptoe, 2006). For instance, Asian international students in the US have reported significant cases of obesity in the new environment. In this regard, aspects such as dieting, physical activities, and BMI tend to cause stress among them during their studying period. Conducting a study to investigate the problem of BMI levels and stress among domestic and international students in the US is critical. This paper will explore the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and stress levels among college and university students in the US.
Assumptions
The study assumes that students in the highest BMI deciles are overweight and obese to facilitate the determination of their perceptions on body weight issues. Individuals in the lower deciles are assumed to be thin and their stress-related issues are not correlated with BMI (Franz & Feresu, 2013). The study also assumes that the samples under study are representative of the aspects of BMI and stress-related problems in all colleges and universities in the US.
Significance of the study
The study is significant since it seeks to explore the differences in BMI and stress levels among domestic and international students in the US. The study facilitates the determination of whether BMI is a factor that induces stress among undergraduate students studying in the US. Additionally, the research adds value to previous studies conducted to explore the relationship between BMI and stress amongst university students.
Limitations
Determining where the overweight begins in the middle BMI deciles is challenging, and thus it interferes with the uniformity of the sample population. There were limitations in the assessment of weight perceptions and weight-losing efforts since the number of items used to determine weight-related behavior was limited. Small sample sizes for studies conducted in particular universities limit the generalization of findings on BMI and stress levels among students in the US. Individuals tend to provide lower weight reports and over-report on their height, thus affecting the correct BMI measurements.
Literature Review
The Journal of American College Health published an article titled, “Assessing overweight, obesity, diet, and physical activity in college students” by Huang et al. (2010). The authors focus on conducting a study among college students to identify their physical activities, dietary habits, and obesity issues (Huang et al., 2010). The article provides information based on the BMI of students between 18 and 29 years of age. The study results indicate poor dietary habits as 18 to 24-year-olds consumed less than five fruit servings in a day. The dietary trend was noted among domestic and international students, especially from Asia. Obesity issues were attributed to inadequate participation in physical activities amongst college students.
The article, “Body image and weight control in young adults: international comparisons in university students from 22 countries” by Wardle et al., (2006), was published in the International Journal of Obesity and it is essential for this study. The authors observed that most “men in the upper BMI deciles were not aware that they were overweight, and thus they put less effort to lose weight” (Wardle et al., 2006, p. 649). Less than 75 % of overweight women in the higher BMI deciles endeavored to reduce weight (Wardle et al., 2006). However, in the US, the awareness levels were higher for both men and women in the upper levels as compared to the other 21 countries. The article is essential since it portrays the perceptions of male and female students in different deciles on their weight issues.
“Dieting Behavior of Asian College Women Attending a US University” by Tsai, Hoerr, and Song is another resourceful article published in the American Journal of College Health. The study conducted by Tsai, Hoerr, and Song (2010) portray how self-esteem and eating habits affect Asian college students pursuing their undergraduate programs in the US. In comparison to the domestic students, the Asian students were more affected by low esteem issues, which induced more stress resulting in low concentration in their studies. In this regard, the literature adds value to understanding how self-esteem issues related to obesity induce stress among Asian college students studying in the US.
Franz and Feresu (2013) authored the article, “The relationship between physical activity, body mass index, and academic performance and college-age student”, which is applicable to this study. The research was conducted to identify how BMI and physical activity affect the academic performance of university students. It was identified that students “in the average BMI categories scored highly in their ACT and GPAs as compared to the overweight category” (Franzl & Feresu, 2013, p. 9). Therefore, the study portrays that the performance of obese students including international students was average due to the emotional imbalances caused by the weight-related complexities.
An article by Futoshi Kobayashi, viz. “Academic achievement, BMI, and fast food intake of American and Japanese college students”, provides informative literature for use in this study. Kobayashi (2009) focuses on the relationship amongst three variables, viz. the BMI, the GPA, and fast food consumption amongst Japanese and American students. The results of his study indicate a negative correlation between GPA and BMI among American students, which is contrary to the Japanese students’ case. The Journal of Biomedical Sciences published an essential article that explains how dietary issues induce stress among Korean college girls. The article shows the correlation between poor nutrition and dietary habits and the induction of life stress among Asian students (Park, You & Chang, 2010). In this regard, poor nutrition and dietary habits among the Korean students indicated the obesity disparities as attributed to economic, cultural, and individual personality factors.
According to Serlachius, Hamer, and Wardle (2007), the study identifies the factors that induce stress among freshmen in the new environment coupled with how it contributes to high obesity rates in the UK. The study facilitated the comparison of the common risk factors that exist in the UK and the US, and thus it enhanced gauging the stress levels and the impact on academic performance.
The article “Gender differences in health habits and motivation for a healthy lifestyle among Swedish university students” considers the disparate lifestyles among students from different cultures including the US implying disparities in health habits. Von Bothmer and Fridlund (2005) also examine the “motivation for healthy living habits between male and female college students in Swedish universities” (p. 107).
The book, “Perspectives on Stress among College Students”, provides an examination of the factors that cause stress among culturally diverse students in various colleges and universities (Adigwe, 2008). The study sample for the examination of obesity and stress-related issues comprised Hispanic, African-American, and Caucasian students in a college based in Washington D.C. The study deduced that obese and overweight college students experienced varying levels of stress regardless of their cultural backgrounds. Additionally, the article, “Food consumption frequency and perceived stress and depressive symptoms among students in three European countries” is essential for this study since it facilitates a comparative analysis of eating habits and their implications on both mental and physical health. There are differences according to gender and country in the aspects of perceived stress, depressive symptoms, and food consumption frequencies (Mikolajczyk et al., 2009).
Study Design
The study design adopted utilized a mixed research design that combines descriptive and analytical methods. The descriptive methods are qualitative whereby data collection tools such as surveys are used to determine the students’ perspectives on their weight issues and stress levels. The analytic aspect of the research design adopted both parallel and crossover randomized groups. The measurement of height and weight for the determination of BMI included the use of measurement tools and asking the participants to give their reports. Statistical tools were used to determine BMI and GPA results among students in a bid to identify the correlation between weight aspects and stress results as depicted in the students’ academic scores.
Discussion
Based on the literature review, study research results have given meaningful findings on the correlation between BMI and stress among college and university students. Research results indicate that 78% of college students have replaced fruits servings with fast foods, which implies that they propagate their health-related risk factors that have implications for their physical and mental health. On the other hand, reduced physical activities among college students from different cultural and racial backgrounds increased their chances of obesity implying that they developed dissatisfaction with their physical appearance, thus resulting in stress (Tsai et al., 2010).
Analyzing the BMI results from various universities in more than 22 countries indicated that men in the lower deciles accepted that they were overweight and they worked towards losing weight. Women perceived themselves as overweight along the BMI deciles, but with inconsistent efforts towards weight loss (Wardle et al., 2006). In this regard, different perceptions on the weight issue tend to induce depression among males and females pursuing undergraduate programs in various universities. Consequently, men and women portray different mechanisms of coping with stressful situations. Domestic and international overweight students in the US tend to experience high levels of stress that affect their grades negatively. Poor dieting, lack of physical exercise, and post-modern lifestyles induce stressful experiences.
References
Adigwe, P. (2008). Perspectives on Stress among College Students: Stress and College Students. Saarbrucken, Germany: VDM Publishing.
Franz, D., & Feresu, S. (2013). The relationship between physical activity, body mass index, and academic performance and college-age students. Open Journal of Epidemiology, 3(1), 4-11.
Huang T., Harris K., Lee, R., Nazir, N., Born, W., & Kaur, H. (2010). Assessing Overweight, Obesity, Diet, and Physical Activity in College Students. Journal of American College Health, 52(2), 83-86.
Kobayashi, F. (2009). Academic achievement, BMI, and fast food intake of American and Japanese college students. Nutrition & Food Science, 39(5), 555-566.
Mikolajczyk, T., El Ansari, W., & Maxwell, A. (2009). Food consumption frequency and perceived stress and depressive symptoms among students in three European countries. Nutrition Journal, 8(1), 31-34.
Park, J., You, J., & Chang, K. (2010). Dietary taurine intake, nutrients intake, dietary habits and life stress by depression in Korean female college students: a case-control study. Journal of Biomedical Science, 17(1), 1-40.
Serlachius, A., Hamer, M., & Wardle, J. (2007). Stress and weight change in university students in the United Kingdom. Physiology & Behavior, 92(1), 548–553.
Tsai, C., Hoerr, L., & Song, W. (2010). Dieting Behavior of Asian College Women Attending a US University. Journal of American College Health, 46(4), 163-168.
Von Bothmer, M., & Fridlund, B. (2005). Gender differences in health habits and in motivation for a healthy lifestyle among Swedish university students. Nursing and Health Sciences, 7(1), 107–118.
Wardle, J., Haase, A. M., & Steptoe, A. (2006). Body image and weight control in young adults: international comparisons in university students from 22 countries. International Journal of Obesity, 30(1), 644–651.