2002 Weight, Nutrition, and Exercise

Provided below are results from Michigan State University's 2002 National Collegiate Health Assessment relating to weight, nutrition, and exercise.

• Respondents' Lifestyles
• Self Image Regarding Weight

Respondents' Lifestyles

Respondents were asked to indicate their height, weight, how many days in the past week they exercised either vigorously for 20 minutes or moderately for 30 minutes, how many days in the past week they got enough sleep so that they awoke feeling rested, and how many servings of fruits and vegetables they usually eat per day. The respondents’ heights and weights were converted into Body Mass Index (BMI) scores (kilograms/meters2) and then categorized into weight statuses with BMI scores of 25.0 - 29.9 coded as overweight and 30.0 or greater coded as obese. The results for these questions are presented in the table to the right along with the comparisons on each between males and females, white and other racial/ethnic group respondents, those living on- and those living off-campus, and among GPA categories. The table indicates that:

• 36.1% of the respondents were overweight (27.1%) or obese (9.0%) based on BMI scores;

• Males were more likely to be overweight or obese than females were (43.5% vs. 29.4%).

• There were no statistically significant differences in BMI categories based on race/ethnicity.

• Respondents with lower GPA’s were somewhat more likely to be overweight or obese than were their counterparts.

• 43.5% of respondents indicated that they exercised three or more days during the previous week. White respondents were more likely than respondents of other races/ethnicities to exercise three or more days per week.

• 38.2% of the respondents did muscle strengthening or toning exercises three or more days in the previous week. White respondents were more likely than their counterparts to report doing strengthening/toning exercises three or more times per week.

• Nearly four out of ten respondents (38.2%) reported getting enough sleep so that they felt rested fewer than four days out of the previous seven.

• Only 5.7% of all respondents reported eating five or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day – the minimum recommended for good health by nutritionists -- and 62.3% reported eating two or fewer servings per day.

• Females tended to report eating more fruits and vegetables that males did, but 92.2% of the female respondents still fell short of the five per day recommendation.

• On-Campus respondents were more likely to report eating at least three servings of fruits and vegetables each day. However, approximately 94% of both on-campus and off-campus respondents fell short of the five per day recommendation.

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Self Image Regarding Weight

The questionnaire include several questions regarding how respondents perceive their own weight status, what they were currently trying to do, if anything, about their weight, and if they had used any of several weight loss strategies in the previous 30 days. The table to the right shows the percentages of respondents giving each of the possible answers and then also compares the percentage distributions of responses among respondents categorized by their BMI-based weight status. The table indicates that:

• Only 10.7% of those in the “Not Overweight” category described themselves as either slightly or very overweight.

• 36.2% of those who were “overweight” and 7.1% of those who were ‘Obese” described themselves as about the right weight or slightly underweight; only 29.4% of those who were categorized as obese described themselves as ‘very overweight.’

• Overall, 46.9% of respondents said they were trying to lose weight.

• 66.7% of those classified as overweight and 81.0% of those classified as obese said they were trying to lose weight, as were 32.7% of those in the “Not Overweight” BMI score range.

• 29.8% of those classified as overweight and 13.1% of those classified as obese said they were either doing nothing about their weight (11.1%; 4.8% respectively) or were trying to stay at the same weight (18.7%; 8.3% respectively).

• 55.8% of all respondents reported that they had exercised to lose weight in the previous 30 days; however, 74.3% of those overweight and 72.9% of those obese reported doing this.

• 32.4% of all respondents claimed to have dieted to lose weight in the previous 30 days, but this was claimed by 45.9% of those classified as overweight and 54.1% of those classified as obese compared to only 23.6% of those classified as not overweight.

• Only 1.9% of respondents reported engaging in purging activities to lose weight.

• Approximately one in twenty (5.9%) reported using diet pills to lose weight, but this was 7.4% among those classified as overweight and 9.3% among those classified as obese.

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