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Food conscientiousness as a buffer against college students' weight gain.
Mitsuru Shimizu1, Kimberly Janke1, Paul Rose1
1Department of Psychology, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Edwardsville, IL, United States.
Frontiers in Public Health
|March 27, 2025
Summary
Food conscientiousness, a tendency for healthier eating, helps college students manage weight gain. Higher food conscientiousness significantly reduces weight gain, regardless of living situation or food access.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Nutrition Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Undergraduate weight gain is a common concern.
- Psychological factors significantly influence weight management in young adults.
- Food conscientiousness, a tendency toward healthier food choices, is introduced as a potential protective factor.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a scale measuring food conscientiousness.
- To investigate the relationship between food conscientiousness and weight gain in undergraduates.
- To determine if food conscientiousness mitigates weight gain irrespective of environmental factors.
Main Methods:
- Phase 1: Development and validation of the food conscientiousness scale.
- Phase 2: Longitudinal assessment of weight changes in undergraduate students during a fall semester.
- Statistical analysis to examine the association between food conscientiousness scores and reported weight gain.
Main Results:
- Undergraduates gained an average of 2 lbs during the fall 2020 semester.
- Food conscientiousness was negatively correlated with weight gain, independent of general conscientiousness.
- Students high in food conscientiousness gained significantly less weight (0.24 lbs) compared to those low (3.93 lbs) over two months.
Conclusions:
- Food conscientiousness is a significant psychological factor in preventing undergraduate weight gain.
- The protective effect of food conscientiousness on weight gain is consistent across different living situations and perceived access to healthy food.
- Interventions promoting food conscientiousness may be effective in managing weight among young adults.
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