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Poll finds most students eat junk food

More than 80 percent of the nation's college students eat junk food every day, according to a survey released on Monday.

The Formosa Cancer Foundation and the Nanshan Life Charity Foundation surveyed 6,442 college and graduate students online between late last month and early this month regarding their dietary habits.

The foundations said at a press conference that more than half of those surveyed were living away from home and therefore routinely ate out. The survey showed that although most students know which foods are "junk foods," they still prefer them.

Deep-fried chicken

The respondents' favorite meal choices included grilled foods, deep-fried chicken with salt, instant noodles, sweets and snacks sold at food stands, according to the survey.

More than half of the students said they ate snacks five to six times a week, while only 6.2 percent said they never ate snacks.

Chief executive officer of the Formosa Cancer Foundation foundation Lai Gi-ming (賴基銘) said that about 80 percent of the students also reported indulging in late-night snacks.

Students choose their foods based on convenience and flavor, Lai said, adding that more than 70 percent of respondents said they had at least one cup of sugared beverage every day.

Less than 1 percent of respondents said they chose their food for their nutritional value, he added.

Although most of the students said they knew that eating fruits and vegetables helps to prevent illnesses such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, gout and cancer, only 18 percent of them ate sufficient amounts of these foods every day, the survey found.

About 77 percent of respondents said they bought vegetable juice from convenience stores as an alternative, Lai said, adding that TV commercials painted an inaccurate picture of the benefits of such juices.

Fresh vegetables

"The drinks cannot replace the nutrition contained in fresh vegetables and fruit," he said.

Since it may be impossible to talk college students out of eating junk food, it may be helpful to advise them to eat healthy food in addition to junk food, Formosa Cancer Foundation dietitian Hsieh Yi-fang (謝宜芳) said.

She suggested that students could eat salad with their deep-fried chicken to balance their grease intake. She also recommended drinking green tea after eating stews.
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