Potential effect of the COVID-19 pandemic to the eating habits and food purchasing behavior of selected college students / Gleniwin L. Peralta, Ferlie Ann C. Alvarez, Riza L. Baluarte, Hannah Bianca T. Torno.

A systematic study was designed to describe and determine the potential effect in eating habits and food purchasing behavior during the pandemic to understand their dietary needs and used 30 randomly selected college students from Manila Tytana Colleges. Mixed-method design is used to collect, identify and analyze the possible effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on selected students. Researchers formulated questionnaire and used online survey to collect data to determine the respondents' eating habits and food purchasing behavior before and during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as its possible effects. Open-ended questionnaire is used to recognize the barriers and enablers of participants' healthy eating habits during the pandemic. Results shows most students still eat their main meals at the right time and were encouraged to practice healthy eating because it can boost their immune system and protect them from disease; however in conclusion the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the adolescent's food choices and mode of purchasing food. Family influence, lack of time and lack of cooking skills were identified as the common reasons for them not practicing healthy eating. Future study on students' eating habits and food purchasing after the pandemic are recommended to see and compare the results we had in this study.