Background:

Unhealthy behaviors such as low physical activity, prolonged fasting, consumption of energy-dense foods and low consumption of fruits and vegetables have repercussions on health.

Objective:

To understand the dietary habits of students from the San Andres campus of the Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, in the Bío-Bío region of Chile.

Materials and Methods:

The dichotomous survey, “Is your diet healthy?” was applied to 350 students.

Results:

The survey revealed that 75% of the students had an unhealthy diet, with a greater prevalence in those between 17-20 years of age (78%). It also demonstrated a low consumption of fruits (<20%), vegetables (42%) and water (46%), together with a low prevalence of healthy/responsible behaviors like avoiding sugary foods (36%), avoiding processed meats (38%), and reading nutrition labels (37%). Men reported a greater consumption of bread, white meats, and water (p<0,05), while women reported the greatest percentages of avoiding processed meats, read ing nutrition labels (p<0,01), and preferred sugary foods and eating properly (p<0,05).

Conclusion:

The surveyed university students presented poor dietary habits, primarily associated with low consumption of fruits and vegetables.

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