Eating Habits of Fourth-Year Teacher Education Students: Their Effects on Physical and Emotional Health

Eating habits are the intentional and repeated ways in which a person eats, including the types of food eaten, the quantities consumed, and the time of intake in response to cultural and societal factors. Students' emotional health influences their eating patterns in such a manner that they feel compelled to eat when they are lonely, frustrated, or bored. The goal of researching and analyzing eating habits is to determine how food intake patterns affect health, well-being, and illness prevention. This understanding aids in the development of measures to encourage healthier eating choices, improve nutritional status, and lower the prevalence of diet-related diseases. This study examined the state and familiarity of eating habits among Teacher Education students at Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology- San Isidro Campus during the academic year 2023-2024. The responders were chosen at random from a group of fourth-year college students studying education. The study followed a descriptive correlational research approach. The following measures are used: frequency, weighted mean, percentage, Pearson correlation, and standard deviation. The results revealed that the students' eating habits consist of three meals each day and a range of foods. The results also suggest that the students' eating habits were more informal, including junk foods, fruits, and vegetables, than a normal meal. The study found no significant variations in respondents' learning results based on their eating habits.