Conhecimento e percepção de estudantes da UFRPE sobre alimentos probióticos.

Abstract

Functional foods have become a global trend in the context of healthy eating and probiotics have proven to be important allies in this quest for better eating habits. With this growing market in mind, the research aimed to analyze the knowledge and perception of students at the Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE) about probiotic foods. For this purpose, the study has a descriptive character, quantitative and qualitative approach and uses the Survey procedure. Data collection was carried out through the application of online forms prepared in Google Forms. The answers obtained showed that a significant number of students were able to correctly define probiotics, highlight the most important terms and correctly point out the benefits associated with these foods. However, they still do not consume it frequently enough to obtain the benefits offered by probiotics. The most mentioned motivations for consumption were related to the ease of finding products in supermarkets, academic readings, advertisements on social networks and medical or nutritional indication. Thus, it was found that students have a good level of knowledge and perception regarding probiotic foods, their benefits and terms related to the area, but still need to consume them in adequate amounts regularly.