Finding Correlations in Lifestyle and the Health of the Gut Microbiota in College-Aged Women
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to investigate the correlation between gut health issues and the dietary and lifestyle habits of female individuals aged 18 to 22 years. This study was conducted mainly to give women more helpful information about their bodies and how they can take care themselves better. Research in the past has mainly studied the impact of these habits in athletes or other subgroups, but few have focused on women and their gut health specifically. We expanded on a study from Yang & Cho (2013) which examined dietary habits in relation to weight control and fatigue symptoms (Yang & Cho, 2013). For our study, we used a modified version of the Yang & Cho survey, which included questions about the participant’s general characteristics, sleep, and exercise habits, and mainly questions related to eating habits and whether or not they caused pain and discomfort. The questions used various formats including Likert scales and open-ended questions in order to find connections between the discomfort and various eating or lifestyle choices. Responses were collected from June 1 to November 1 of 2023 and a total of 46 women from the North and South Carolina participated. Analysis of the qualitative data is still being conducted to find correlations. The data was sorted into different groups based on their question types. With data that was more categorical, quantitative analysis will be conducted. From preliminary analysis, it appears that certain foods regularly cause discomfort. This shows a positive correlation for our data and information from the complete analysis will be presented at the conference.
Keywords
women; gut health; survey
Finding Correlations in Lifestyle and the Health of the Gut Microbiota in College-Aged Women
CASB 103
The purpose of this study is to investigate the correlation between gut health issues and the dietary and lifestyle habits of female individuals aged 18 to 22 years. This study was conducted mainly to give women more helpful information about their bodies and how they can take care themselves better. Research in the past has mainly studied the impact of these habits in athletes or other subgroups, but few have focused on women and their gut health specifically. We expanded on a study from Yang & Cho (2013) which examined dietary habits in relation to weight control and fatigue symptoms (Yang & Cho, 2013). For our study, we used a modified version of the Yang & Cho survey, which included questions about the participant’s general characteristics, sleep, and exercise habits, and mainly questions related to eating habits and whether or not they caused pain and discomfort. The questions used various formats including Likert scales and open-ended questions in order to find connections between the discomfort and various eating or lifestyle choices. Responses were collected from June 1 to November 1 of 2023 and a total of 46 women from the North and South Carolina participated. Analysis of the qualitative data is still being conducted to find correlations. The data was sorted into different groups based on their question types. With data that was more categorical, quantitative analysis will be conducted. From preliminary analysis, it appears that certain foods regularly cause discomfort. This shows a positive correlation for our data and information from the complete analysis will be presented at the conference.