Repositorio Académico

University students usually present irregular and unhealthy eating patterns. Physical Education students are more active than other college students. Thus, they should display better healthy habits than the average population, mainly in order to achieve optimal physical and academic performance. However, studies previous to this investigation indicated that a high percentage of these students show hypoglycaemia under fasting conditions. The objective of this study was to determine the nutritional intake and blood glucose levels of university students from Physical Education. The sample included 56 students of Physical Education (Chile), who belonged to the first (n=30) and third (n=26) academic year. Body Mass Index (BMI), fasting blood glucose, and nutritional intake (24-hour dietary recall) were measured in each subject. The students showed an average BMI of 23 kg/m2. Statistically significant differences were observed in the blood glucose levels (p <.05) between students from different academic years. Outcomes highlighted a high percentage of students with dietary intake lower than the total calories (41%), fats (61%), and carbohydrates (25%) required. On the contrary, 50% of the students showed a protein intake higher than 120% of their nutritional requirements. In conclusion, most of the evaluated students were classified with a normal BMI, had hypoglycaemia, as well as a food strategy focused on high intake of proteins. © Federación Española de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educación Física (FEADEF)