The eating attitude of undergraduate students studying a nutritional science course is reported. The survey was designed as a longitudinal study to examine the change in eating attitude. The participants (79 female college students) answered the same questionnaire twice, once as first-year students and then as third-year students. They were asked what importance they placed on their ideal dietary habits such as “eating satisfaction”, “food culture”, “nutrition” and “cooking”. They were also questioned about their subjective knowledge and skill, the stage of change in their ideal dietary habits, and the desire to become dietitians.
The results of the questionnaire survey show that “eating satisfaction”, “food culture” and “cooking” in their ideal dietary habits are considered more important as third-year students than when they were studying in the first year. The third-year students also responded that they have more knowledge and skill to express their ideal dietary habits. However, the students who are in control of their ideal dietary habits did not increase from the first to third years of study, and there was no relationship between the change in eating attitude and their knowledge and skill.
Only the aspect of “food culture” in the eating attitude was related to the desire to become a dietitian. This result may provide ideas for educating in eating attitude as part of dietetic education. It may be important for dietitians to have a well-balanced eating attitude, and to keep to a diet that brings them close to this attitude. Our observations provide the essential information that students studying to become dietitians should acquire a well-balanced eating attitude and modify their eating behavior to suit this attitude during nutrition education.
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