When bad food happens to good intentions: female students' food dilemmas

Female students' food dilemmas are explored with a special focus on reasons why unhealthy food consumption happens in spite of the students' good intentions to eat healthy diets. The study takes a qualitative approach based on 11 in-depth interviews and 5 focus groups with Danish and international female students. Theoretically, the article draws on existing literature on food and student food consumption and on Warde's food consumption antinomies. The female students in this study find that they are well-informed about nutrition, and several of them express that they are experienced cooks from home. However, what they themselves define as 'bad' food sneaks into their diets, because of lack of time and energy, pressure from their studies and food cravings, along with more liberal rules in social situations. Until now, student food has been explored almost exclusively through quantitative methods, focusing on students as passive and vulnerable. Through qualitative methods, this article invites readers to view female students as complex and empowered food consumers entangled in food dilemmas. Their concerns about healthy eating are significant. They hold a critical view of their parents' food practices, and sometimes even act as role models for family and peers.