Dietary Patterns, Food-Group Profiles, and Nutritional Characteristics in a Diverse Cohort of Young Adults Attending a UK University (2016)

Background/Objectives: Whole-diet patterns in geographically diverse university populations remain insufficiently characterised. We examined food-group consumption and dietary patterns according to sex and geographical background in a historical UK university cohort.

Methods

This cross-sectional analysis included 111 students assessed at De Montfort University, Leicester, in early 2016. Habitual intake was assessed using an expanded, adapted EPIC-Norfolk food-frequency questionnaire. Fifteen food groups were evaluated using principal component analysis after log1p transformation and standardisation; between-group comparisons were adjusted for relevant covariates and subjected to Benjamini–Hochberg false-discovery-rate correction.