Evaluation of the Nutritional Knowledge of Undergraduate Nursing Students.
BACKGROUND
Obesity is prevalent in health care workers, but it is unknown whether a lack of nutritional knowledge contributes to this. This study measured the nutrition knowledge of undergraduate nursing students to identify knowledge gaps that could be addressed through nutrition teaching in an updated undergraduate nursing curriculum.


METHODS
Undergraduate nursing students (N = 197) completed a nutrition knowledge survey with questions on demographics, body composition, nutrition labels, food packaging claims, and healthy food-purchasing choices.


RESULTS
Mean overall nutritional knowledge scores were low, but overall scores were higher for students who had received nutrition teaching (60.5% versus 52.5%; F[1, 187] = 7.2, p < 0.001). Improvements in nutrition knowledge were consistent across all ethnic groups, and no effects of age were observed.


CONCLUSIONS
To sufficiently prepare nurses for their public health role in obesity prevention, more nutrition education is needed in undergraduate nursing education programs, with emphasis on ethnic-specific educational requirements.
Lynne M
LM
Chepulis
Gael J
GJ
Mearns
D000328:Adult; D003479:Curriculum; D004508:Education, Nursing, Baccalaureate; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009520:New Zealand; D052756:Nutritional Sciences / Q000193:education*