New Insights on Dietary Assessment Recommender System For Pre-University Adolescents

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: An individual's health status will be influenced by their nutritional status, which is mainly based on their eating habits. Adolescence is an essential phase for growth and development that will be influenced by healthy eating habits. In view of this, a dietary recommender system to understand and improve dietary habits is crucial. In this study, the dietary recommender system, consisting of meal routines, food preferences, and dietary practices of pre-university adolescents, will be presented. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was conducted at a pre-university centre, involving a sample of 125 students. A self-administered structured questionnaire was used to collect demographic data, daily meal routines, food intake frequency, and dietary behaviour patterns. Two weeks before completing the questionnaire, the students were instructed to monitor their dietary practices. RESULTS: The food intake frequency survey was divided into two categories: food intake less than three times a week (< three times/week) and three times a week or more (≥ three times/week). The results showed that cereal consumption was most frequent at 87.2% for food intake < three times/week, while meat consumption was highest for food intake ≥ three times/week (84.8%). Almost 81% of students reported snacking between meals, with the majority snacking less than twice daily (60.8%). Females showed a higher tendency to snack. In terms of dietary behaviour patterns, there were significant differences between genders in terms of overeating and unbalanced food intake. The four primary dietary behaviour patterns were found to be positively correlated with each other. The correlation study results indicated positive relationships between dietary behaviour patterns and body mass index (BMI), except for a negative relationship between high fat/high calorie diet and BMI. CONCLUSION: Multiple regression analysis suggested that overeating, having a high fat/high calorie diet, unbalanced food intake, and dietary impulses collectively explains variations in BMI.