Health Awareness

1. Is the UWI Campus community health conscious?

Tertiary education has become a pillar of development and many countries within the Caribbean have seen increased enrolment at its tertiary level institutions. In Trinidad and Tobago, “participation in tertiary education has increased to 65.23 per cent as at December 31, 2013” (Karim 2014). With such a sizeable portion of its population engaged in some form of tertiary level education, the potential effects on persons’ health come into focus. The majority of respondents (67.5%) consider themselves to be “health conscious” while 32.5% admit that they are not.

This may provide an explanation for the finding that many respondents buy food off campus – 59.3% claimed that they do not eat healthy food on campus; 40.7% eat what they deem to be healthy food on campus.

2. What are people’s perception of healthy food options on campus?

The leading reason for respondents not eating healthy food on campus may be the perception that the campus has “few healthy options,” which was selected by 60.4% of the respondents as their reason for not eating healthy on campus. Taste was the second most popular reason, with 18.8% selecting this option.

3. What are the reasons for members of the campus community not eating healthy?

The leading reason for respondents not eating healthy food on campus may be the perception that the campus has “few healthy options,” which was selected by 60.4% of the respondents as their reason for not eating healthy on campus. Taste was the second most popular reason, with 18.8% selecting this option.

4. What healthy food options would members of the campus community like to see on campus?

5. What are the obstacles to healthy eating at the St. Augustine Campus of the UWI?

The price of healthy foods was selected by 35% of the respondents as their major obstacle to obtaining healthy food on campus (Fig 5.11). This was followed by “culture”, which was selected by 11.7% of the respondents, and included factors such as an overall preference for fast food and students not liking healthy food. “Outlet-related” factors, such as the length of lines, space and the overall look of the outlets were selected by 11.1% of the respondents as obstacles to obtaining healthy food on campus. When asked to suggest other healthy options which they would like to see on campus, many respondents (21.4%) indicated that they would like a “salad bar.”