Unhealthy diets increase the likelihood of being overweight or obese among African migrant students in China, but not among African non-migrant students: a cross-sectional study
- PMID: 38562488
- PMCID: PMC10984215
- DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1291360
Unhealthy diets increase the likelihood of being overweight or obese among African migrant students in China, but not among African non-migrant students: a cross-sectional study
Abstract
Background: The impact of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is disproportionately felt by immigrants from low- to medium-income countries (LMICs), partly due to their dietary habits. To thrive in their new environment, migrants either omit or consume certain food items, which could lead to nutritional deficits. As a result, most migrants experience more NCDs than their compatriots in their native countries. Therefore, we evaluated the difference in dietary habits, quality, and the influencing factors of overweight or obesity among African migrant students in Nanjing (China) and non-migrant students in Africa using cross-sectional data.
Methods: The researchers used the food frequency questionnaire and the global diet quality score metrics to assess food intake and quality, respectively. Then, cross-tabulation was employed to explore the differences between the groups in meal skipping, eating habits, and diet quality. Finally, the factors associated with overweight or obesity were assessed with binary logistic regression stratified by African students in Nanjing and students in their native countries.
Results: Approximately 678 responses were received, mainly between 18-25 years (46.7%) and 26-36 years (45.4 %). The majority of them (52.3%) were international students. The non-migrant African students' diets lacked citrus fruits (22.2%), deep orange fruits (15.4%), deep orange vegetables (18%), cruciferous vegetables (24.6%), and dark leafy vegetables (26.5%). While the African migrant students consumed more high-fat dairy (50.7%), processed meats (23.9%), sweets and ice creams (51.3%), sugar-sweetened beverages (40.5%), and juice (61.5%), p < 0.001. Furthermore, consuming late-night meals constantly [Exp (B) = 39.607, p = 0.049], eating twice a day [Exp (B) = 6.527, p = 0.036], consuming red meat [Exp (B) = 29.287, p = 0.001], processed meats [Exp (B) = 719.979, p = 0.0011], refined grains and baked foods [Exp (B) = 15.752, p = 0.013], and sweets and ice cream [Exp (B) = 193.633, p = 0.006] were factors inducing overweight or obesity among only African migrant students.
Conclusion: Controlling the what (Western diet and nature of late-night meals) and the when of eating can drastically reduce their influence on obesogenic condition formation in African migrant students in China and elsewhere.
Keywords: Africans; China; diet quality; eating habits; global diet quality score; overweight or obesity; students; western diet.
Copyright © 2024 Awudi, Walker, Weeto, Priddy, Akan, Baduweh, Arthur, Yakubu, Bafei, Olagunju, Zaitoun, Zhong, Feng, Zhang, Wei and Feng.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Similar articles
-
Influence of diet quality on nutritional status of school-aged children and adolescents in Zanzibar, Tanzania.PLoS One. 2023 Oct 20;18(10):e0293316. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293316. eCollection 2023. PLoS One. 2023. PMID: 37862346 Free PMC article.
-
Healthy eating habits and a prudent dietary pattern improve Nanjing international students' health-related quality of life.Front Public Health. 2023 Nov 24;11:1211218. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1211218. eCollection 2023. Front Public Health. 2023. PMID: 38098838 Free PMC article.
-
A cross sectional analysis of eating habits and weight status of university students in urban Cameroon.BMC Nutr. 2017 Jul 11;3:55. doi: 10.1186/s40795-017-0178-7. eCollection 2017. BMC Nutr. 2017. PMID: 32153835 Free PMC article.
-
An overview of the nutrition transition in West Africa: implications for non-communicable diseases.Proc Nutr Soc. 2015 Nov;74(4):466-77. doi: 10.1017/S0029665114001669. Epub 2014 Dec 22. Proc Nutr Soc. 2015. PMID: 25529539 Review.
-
Dietary determinants of healthy/unhealthy metabolic phenotype in individuals with normal weight or overweight/obesity: a systematic review.Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2023;63(22):5856-5873. doi: 10.1080/10408398.2021.2025036. Epub 2022 Jan 10. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2023. PMID: 35001754
Cited by
-
Cardiovascular Disease Burden among African Migrants.Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2025 May 30;27(1):59. doi: 10.1007/s11883-025-01307-w. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2025. PMID: 40442399 Free PMC article. Review.
References
-
- Ramírez AS, Golash-Boza T, Unger JB, Baezconde-Garbanati L. Questioning the dietary acculturation paradox: a mixed-methods study of the relationship between food and ethnic identity in a group of Mexican-American women. J Acad Nutr Diet. (2018) 118:431–9. 10.1016/j.jand.2017.10.008 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
-
- Zhu JF. Lifestyle changes and acculturative stress of Chinese international students living in Korea. Chung-Ang University. (2012).
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Research Materials