COMPARISON OF OBESITY AWARENESS LEVELS OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS BEFORE AND AFTER EXPLAINING THE DAMAGES OF OBESITY

Abstract

Obesity; It has become one of the biggest health questions of today. Many people become obese or
approach the obese limit, primarily due to improper nutrition and insufficient exercise. The purpose
of this study is; To compare the obesity awareness levels of university students before and after
being told about the harms of obesity. As a method in the study; The pretest-posttest experimental
model, which is included in the quantitative research method, was used. Ethical approval for the
study was received from the ethics committee of Iğdır University. The sample of the study consisted
of 154 students. As a data collection tool in the study; A survey consisting of socio-demographic
questions prepared by the researcher and the "Obesity Awareness Scale" developed by Allen (2011)
and its Turkish adaptation by Kafkas and Özer were used. The overall internal consistency
Cronbach Alpha value of the scale is 0.87. SPSS 20 program was used to analyze the data obtained.
In the analysis of the data obtained, homogeneity and normality distribution were first examined
and it was determined that the data showed a normal distribution. Descriptive statistical analysis
and paired sample t test were applied to analyze the data. At the end of the study, when the students'
first and last measurement scores from the Obesity Awareness and Physical Activity Dimension
were compared, a statistically significant difference was found, while no statistically significant
difference was determined in the Nutrition Dimension.