An Australian evaluation of the tick program awareness among university students
Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of death in Australia. The Tick Program by the National Heart Foundation was designed to assist consumers in making healthier food choices. Objective: The aim of our study was to evaluate the awareness of university students regarding the Tick Program as a...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
2012
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4755/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4755/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4755/1/vol%25202%2520no%25201%25202012_10.pdf |
| Summary: | Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of death in Australia. The Tick
Program by the National Heart Foundation was designed to assist consumers
in making healthier food choices.
Objective: The aim of our study was to evaluate the awareness of university students
regarding the Tick Program as a sustainable approach in preventing the onset
of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in youth.
Methods Following Ethics Committee approval, a cross-sectional study was
undertaken in 2006 to measure university students’ level of awareness of the
Tick Program using a self-administered survey form. Inclusion criteria were
full-time university students who have lived in Australia for a minimum
duration of twelve months and do their own shopping. Students of less than
18 years of age were excluded from the study.
Results Of 110 university students surveyed, 97 questionnaires were successfully
completed (response rate: 88%). Overall there was a high level of awareness
(72.2%) of the Tick program, which was also considered trustworthy by a
majority of participants, with a mean rating of 3.87 (on a scale of 1 to 5).
Tick-approved products were also considered a healthier choice by
participants (mean 4.06 out of 5). Participants were also asked to identify
potential barriers limiting the use of the Tick in making purchase decisions.
The most important barrier identified to the Tick program was the limited
range of Tick-approved products. A significant proportion of respondents
also believed there was limited publicity of the program.
Conclusions The Tick Program is considered to be trustworthy and the approved products
were regarded as healthy, with the results showing that participants have
confidence in the Tick Program. This research also highlighted the potential
areas for improvement of the Tick Program. |
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