Knowledge, attitudes, and practices towards sustainable diets and food choice motives among IPB university students with overweight and obesity: A cross-sectional study
Abstract
Background: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among university students Indonesia has been rising, with food choices playing a central role in both nutritional and environmental outcomes. However, evidence on knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) toward sustainable diets and their relationship with food choice motives among students with overweight and obesity remains absent in the Indonesian context. This study aimed to determine the association between KAP of sustainable diets and food choice motives among overweight and obese students at IPB University (Institut Pertanian Bogor). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at IPB University Dramaga Campus, Bogor. A total of 97 subjects from undergraduate and postgraduate students from non-nutrition majors were recruited with a purposive sampling technique. Bivariate analysis was performed using the Spearman rank correlation test, and multivariate analysis was performed using binary logistic regression. Results: Most of the subjects (86.6%) had a poor knowledge. Similarly, attitude and practice were also predominantly poor (76.3% and 92.8%, respectively). Spearman correlation analysis revealed significant associations between knowledge and attitude, knowledge and practice, and attitude and practice (p<0.05). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that a good attitude towards a sustainable diet was significantly associated with food choice motives among IPB University Students with overweight and obesity (OR=5.280; 95%CI=1.768-15.769; p=0.003). Conclusion: Attitude of sustainable diet was significantly associated with food choice motives among IPB University students with overweight and obesity. University health programs should integrate sustainable diet education targeting attitudinal change, particularly among students with excess body weight.Downloads
References
Ng M, Gakidou E, Lo J, Abate YH, Abbafati C, Abbas N, et al. Global, regional, and national prevalence of adult overweight and obesity, 1990–2021, with forecasts to 2050: a forecasting study for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021. The Lancet. 2025;405(10481):813-838.
Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia. Survey Kesehatan Indonesia (SKI) 2023.
Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia BPDPK. Laporan Nasional Riset Kesehatan Dasar 2007. Jakarta: Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Kesehatan, Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia; 2007.
Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia BPDPK. Riset Kesehatan Dasar: Riskesdas 2013. Jakarta: Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Kesehatan; Kementerian Kesehatan Republik Indonesia; 2013.
Sulthonah N, Marsyidah S, Kurnia R, Putri W, A'yun Q, Angelina NR, et al. Obesity, Dietary Habits, and Body Image Perception in College Students at Sultan Ageng Tirtayasa University. Journal of Health and Nutrition Research. 2023;2(3):158-163.
Rahmawati R, Nurwati I, Wiboworini B. Does Eating Out Cause in Overweight and Obesity in Adolescence?. Global Health Science Group; 2023.
Rahadian FA WUSS. Factors Associated with the Incidence of Obesity among College Students at Fakultas Ilmu Kesehatan Universitas Pembangunan Nasional “Veteran” Jakarta. Amerta Nutrition. 2024:3-8.
Vidiawati D, Werdhani RA, Sahar J, Ekawati FM, Dewanti L, Lestari P, et al. Excess body weight and its associated factors among first-year health sciences university students in Indonesia. PLOS ONE. 2025;20(5 May).
Oddo VM, Maehara M, Rah JH. Overweight in Indonesia: An observational study of trends and risk factors among adults and children. BMJ Open. 2019;9(9).
Wisnuwardani RW, Noviasty R, Saputri A, Kurniawati ER. Changes of Physical Activity and Ultra-Processed Food Consumption in College students during COVID-19 Pandemic: An Observational Study. Media Gizi Indonesia. 2022;17(3):293-301.
Wijaya BM, Awan SA, Weta IW, Ani LS. Dietary patterns, physical activity, and nutritional status of medical students at Udayana University. Intisari Sains Medis. 2024;15(1):237-242.
Perez-Cueto FJ, Olsen A. The multifaceted dimensions of food choice and nutrition. Nutrients. 2020;12(2).
Jeslin, Astina J. The relationship between Indonesian young people’s knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of MyPlate with sociodemographic, body satisfaction, accessibility, and source of information. Global Health Promotion. 2023;30(4):35-44.
Noviandewi TW, Djaya PN. The Relationship of Nutrition Literacy, Eating Pattern, and Nutritional Status among Medical Students. Journal of Urban Health Research. 2023;1(3):12-21.
Tazhkia N, Noerfitri N. Relationship between Nutritional Knowledge, Vegetable and Fruit Consumption Behavior, and Nutritional Status of Students at Bhayangkara University, Bekasi. JIKM. 2025;17(3):154-161.
Jayasinghe S, Byrne NM, Hills AP. Cultural influences on dietary choices. Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases. 2025; 90:22-26.
Ahuja SS, Rai K. Healthy Eating—A Structured Literature Review Using Theory‐Context‐Characteristics‐Methods (TCCM) Approach and Future Research Agendas. Journal of Consumer Behaviour. 2025;24(4):2097-2120.
Trinh HT, Linderhof V, Vuong VT, Esaryk EE, Heller M, Dijkxhoorn Y, et al. Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam. Agriculture. 2021;11(2):137.
FAO and WHO. Sustainable healthy diets – Guiding principles; 2019.
Kabasakal-Cetin A, Aksaray B, Sen G. The role of food literacy and sustainable and healthy eating behaviors in ultra-processed foods consumption of undergraduate students. Food Quality and Preference. 2024;119:105232.
Kloppenburg R. Mind the gap: factors influencing the translation of Nutrition Knowledge into Practice Intention, a case of two South African rural communities IDS-MASTER THESIS.
Principato L, Pice G, Pezzi A. Understanding food choices in sustainable healthy diets – A systematic literature review on behavioral drivers and barriers. Environmental Science & Policy. 2025;163:103975.
Sakai Y, Rahayu YYS, Araki T. Nutritional Value of Canteen Menus and Dietary Habits and Intakes of University Students in Indonesia. Nutrients. 2022;14(9).
WHO. The world health report 2000: health systems: improving performance. World Health Organization; 2000.
Lwanga SK LSWHO. Sample Size Determination in Health Studies: A Practical Manual. World Health Organization; 1991.
Informa Markets & FMCG Gurus. Sustainability in Indonesia. Food Ingredients Asia; 2022.
lluminate Asia. Sustainability in grocery choices: How Indonesia fares on a global stage and the emergence of an attitude–behaviour gap; 2021.
Canyolu BA, Martini D, Şen N. Validity and reliability of the Sustainable HEalthy Diet (SHED) index by comparison with EAT-Lancet diet, Mediterranean diet in Turkish adults. PeerJ. 2024;12(9).
Agarwal S, Kumar A, Research J, Joshi N, Raghuvanshi RS, Dutta A. Development and validation of sustainable diet questionnaire for Indian adults. 2023.
STEPTOE A, POLLARD TM, WARDLE J. Development of a Measure of the Motives Underlying the Selection of Food: the Food Choice Questionnaire. Appetite. 1995;25(3):267-284.
Tanziha I. Food choice: Theory and instruments and its role in the sustainability of the food system. IPB Press; 2023.
Kennedy I. Sample Size Determination in Test-Retest and Cronbach Alpha Reliability Estimates. British Journal of Contemporary Education. 2022;2(1):17-29.
Marty L, Chambaron S, Lauzon-Guillain B, Nicklaus S. The motivational roots of sustainable diets: Analysis of food choice motives associated to health, environmental and socio-cultural aspects of diet sustainability in a sample of French adults. Cleaner and Responsible Consumption. 2022;5:100059.
Schober P, Boer C, Schwarte LA. Correlation Coefficients: Appropriate Use and Interpretation. Anesthesia & Analgesia. 2018;126(5):1763-1768.
Keisyafa A, Novaturahmah Sunarya D, Monna Aghniya S, Putri Maula S. Analysis of Student's Awareness of Sustainable Diet in Reducing Carbon Footprint to Support Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030. 2024.
García-González Á, Achón M, Carretero Krug A, Varela-Moreiras G, Alonso-Aperte E. Food Sustainability Knowledge and Attitudes in the Spanish Adult Population: A Cross-Sectional Study. Nutrients. 2020;12(10):3154.
YÜKSEL A, YILMAZ ÖNAL H. Evaluation of University Students’ Knowledge of and Practices for Sustainable Nutrition. International Journal of Agriculture Environment and Food Sciences. 2021;5(2):146-156.
Marchi E, Bo C, Martini D, Cavaliere A. Nutrition knowledge, attitude, and practice of sustainable healthy diets: a survey of Italian college students (the KAPSULE study). Italian Journal of Food Science. 2026;38(1):376-387.
Chene O, Chambaron S, Arvisenet G, Dujourdy L. Sustainable diets: Links between knowledge, motivations and eating practices. Peer Community Journal. 2025;5:000-000.
Asvatourian V, Craig T, Horgan G, Kyle J, Macdiarmid J. Relationship between pro-environmental attitudes and behaviour and dietary intake patterns. Sustainable Production and Consumption. 2018;16:216-226.
Maulida R, Nanishi K, Green J, Shibanuma A, Jimba M. Food-choice motives of adolescents in Jakarta, Indonesia: the roles of gender and family income. Public Health Nutrition. 2016;19(15):2760-2768.
Afiq M, Azmi NN, Sharkawi I. Food choice: Motivational factors among Malaysian higher education students. Journal of Islamic, Social, Economics and Development (JISED). 2024;9(9):501-515.
Yugharyanti TP, Fatimah S, Rahfiludin MZ. Alasan Pemilihan Makanan, Akses Pembelian Makanan, dan Kualitas Diet pada Mahasiswa. Journal of Nutrition College. 2024;13(1):17-28.
Zidan S, Hilary S, Platat C. Exploring food choices among educated adults in the United Arab Emirates. Frontiers in Nutrition. 2026;12.
Glenisson L, Hallez L, Smits T. “Thought for food”: A systematic review of how psychological state factors affect sustainable food outcomes. Sustainable Production and Consumption. 2025;57:277-291.
McDermott M, Oliver M, Simnadis T, Beck E, Coltman T, Iverson D, et al. The Theory of Planned Behaviour and dietary patterns: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Preventive Medicine. 2015;81:150-156.
Submitted
Copyright (c) 2026 Dewi Firda Sari, Sri Anna Marliyati, Ikeu Tanziha

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
World Nutrition Journal provides immediate open access to its content under the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0). This permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.







