Formation of ideas about rational nutrition as an element of student’s environmental education

Abstract

The aim of the work was to form ideas about rational nutrition as an element of ecological education of students by studying and discussing their eating behavior in relation to foods rich in vitamin D using quantitative descriptor-profile analysis. Quantitative descriptor-profile analysis showed that the “poorest” profiles have foods with the highest vitamin D. Thus, foods with a high vitamin D content do not fall into the circle of students’ dietary preferences. The results of the survey showed that the most frequently consumed foods for young people are fried potatoes, pizza, dumplings and cheese. Products such as cheese, butter, artificial red caviar, mushrooms (chanterelles) can be successfully used as a base for fortification with vitamin D, since they are positively perceived by students and affordable. It was shown that cheese is the only product that, when surveyed by 59 young people, was included both in the list of 5 most favorite and frequently consumed foods, and was selected from the list of 22 foods offered to the respondents containing significant amounts of vitamin D. The research carried out is the basis for forming students’ understanding of the importance of a balanced diet in the context of environmental education.