{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T13:55:02Z","timestamp":1787061302779,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,6]],"date-time":"2026-06-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1780704000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction: Dietary habits adopted during young adulthood play a critical role in physical, emotional, and cognitive health. University students represent a particularly vulnerable group due to academic stress, lifestyle transitions, and increased autonomy, factors that may influence eating behaviors, body weight perception, and psychological well-being. This study aims to examine dietary habits among students and their associations with self-perceived body weight, lifestyle characteristics, and psychological factors within a biopsychosocial framework. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted using a structured, self-administered online questionnaire distributed to university students aged 18\u201330 years in Romania. The questionnaire assessed dietary habits, nutritional knowledge, lifestyle behaviors, and psychological variables, including perceived stress and body weight perception. Body mass index was calculated based on self-reported anthropometric data. Results: The findings indicated substantial variability in dietary behaviors, with a high prevalence of irregular meal patterns, frequent snacking, and engagement in weight-control practices. Irregular meal patterns were reported by approximately 62% of participants, while 47% had engaged in at least one weight-loss diet. Discrepancies between self-reported BMI and perceived body weight were observed in roughly 38% of cases, and 83% of respondents reported at least one psychological symptom (stress, anxiety, or low mood) related to eating behaviors. A positive correlation was observed between sleep duration and perceived rest quality (r = 0.364, p &lt; 0.001). High frequencies of caffeinated beverage consumption were also observed. Additionally, 204 participants reported no alcohol consumption, while the variety of alcoholic beverages consumed was strongly correlated with alcohol intake frequency (r = 0.734, p &lt; 0.001). Conclusions: Dietary habits among university students are closely interconnected with body weight perception, lifestyle behaviors, and psychological well-being. These findings emphasize the need for integrative health promotion strategies that address nutrition, emotional regulation, and lifestyle balance to support mental and cognitive health during young adulthood.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu18121837","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,8]],"date-time":"2026-06-08T02:32:46Z","timestamp":1780885966000},"page":"1837","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Eating Habits, Body Weight Perception, and Psycho-Emotional Factors Among Romanian University Students: A Cross-Sectional Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3852-9060","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ramona Amina","family":"Popovici","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Baleanu","family":"Vlad-Dumitru","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of General Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, \u2018Carol Davila\u2019 University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 020021 Bucharest, Romania"},{"name":"Surgery Department, Clinical Emergency Hospital Sf. Pantelimon, 340\u2013342 Pantelimon Road, 021659 Bucharest, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Laria-Maria","family":"Trusculescu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-4581-8487","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andreea Mihaela","family":"Ki\u0219","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alexandra","family":"Enache","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Neuroscience, Discipline of Forensic Medicine, Bioethics, Deontology and Medical Law, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Cristina Raluca","family":"Bodo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Bioethics, Medical Deontology and Medical Communication, \u201cGeorge Emil Palade\u201d University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, 540139 T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ana Gabriela","family":"Seni","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Doctoral School, \u201cGeorge Emil Palade\u201d University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology of T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, 540139 T\u00e2rgu Mure\u0219, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Liana","family":"Dehelean","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Medicine, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anca","family":"Porumb","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dental Medicine Department, University of Oradea, 410068 Oradea, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2585-2632","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Diana","family":"Marian","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, \u201cVasile Goldi\u0219\u201d Western University of Arad, 94\u201396 Revolutiei Blvd., 310025 Arad, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Alexandru","family":"Mischie","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Doctoral School, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-3959-9901","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Dana Emanuela","family":"Cot (Pitic)","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Dental Medicine, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"},{"name":"Doctoral School, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Adina","family":"Feher","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Doctoral School, \u201cVictor Babes\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 300041 Timisoara, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Liana","family":"Todor","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dental Medicine Department, University of Oradea, 410068 Oradea, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Romero-Blanco, C., Hernandez-Martinez, A., Parra-Fernandez, M.L., Onieva-Zafra, M.D., Prado-Laguna, M.d.C., and Rodr\u00edguez-Almagro, J. 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