Nutritional knowledge in British Army recruits during basic training

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Military Nutrition
• Public Health

Background:

• Optimal nutrition is crucial for military recruit health and performance.
• Nutritional knowledge significantly influences dietary behaviors.
• Limited understanding exists regarding British Army recruits' nutritional knowledge levels.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the nutritional knowledge of British Army recruits undergoing basic training.
• To identify specific areas of nutritional knowledge deficits within recruit populations.
• To evaluate changes in nutritional knowledge throughout basic training.

Main Methods:

• The Nutritional Knowledge Questionnaire for Athletes was administered to standard-entry and infantry recruits.
• Participants included 29 male and 26 female standard-entry recruits, and 15 male infantry recruits.
• Data were analyzed for between-group and within-group differences in total and subcomponent scores.

Main Results:

• Standard-entry males (52%) scored higher than standard-entry females (38%) and male infantry (40%) recruits.
• Infantry recruits showed no significant knowledge improvement from the start (39%) to the end (40%) of training.
• Highest knowledge scores were observed for protein (53%-75%) and vitamins/minerals (42%-63%).

Conclusions:

• British Army recruits, especially standard-entry females and infantry, possess inadequate nutritional knowledge.
• Nutritional knowledge did not improve during basic training for any assessed group.
• Enhanced nutrition education, focusing on carbohydrates and fluids, is necessary during basic training to foster lifelong healthy eating habits.