Gender-Specific Prevalence of Risk Factors for Non-Communicable Diseases by Health Service Use among Schoolteachers in Afghanistan

Sharifullah Alemi, Keiko Nakamura, Ahmad Shekib Arab, Mohammad Omar Mashal, Yuri Tashiro, Kaoruko Seino and Shafiqullah Hemat
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Sharifullah Alemi: Department of Global Health Entrepreneurship, Division of Public Health, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Keiko Nakamura: Department of Global Health Entrepreneurship, Division of Public Health, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Ahmad Shekib Arab: Department of Global Health Entrepreneurship, Division of Public Health, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Mohammad Omar Mashal: French Medical Institute for Mothers and Children (FMIC), Kabul 1011, Afghanistan
Yuri Tashiro: Department of Global Health Entrepreneurship, Division of Public Health, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Kaoruko Seino: Department of Global Health Entrepreneurship, Division of Public Health, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan
Shafiqullah Hemat: Ministry of Public Health, Kabul 1002, Afghanistan

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 11, 1-14

Abstract: Objectives of this study were: (1) to examine gender differences in biomedical indicators, lifestyle behaviors, self-health check practices, receipt of professional non-communicable disease (NCD)-related lifestyle advice, and the use of health services among teachers in Afghanistan; and (2) to seek the patterns of these indicators among users and non-users of health services among both male and female teachers. This cross-sectional study was carried out among 600 schoolteachers in Kabul city in February 2017. Gender differences in percentage distributions of abnormal biomedical indicators, lifestyle behaviors, self-health check practices, and receipt of professional lifestyle advice were examined. These patterns were further analyzed according to the use of health services in the previous 12 months by both genders. The results showed that male teachers had a higher prevalence of hypertension, increased serum triglycerides, physically active lifestyle, and tobacco use than female teachers (28.2/20.4, p = 0.038; 47.0/37.9, p = 0.040; 54.3/40.9, p = 0.002; 15.8/0.7, p < 0.001, respectively); female teachers had a higher prevalence of increased serum LDL cholesterol, overweight/obesity, and frequent consumption of fruits/vegetables than male teachers (61.3/50.8, p = 0.018; 64.7/43.5, p < 0.001; 71.4/53.8, p < 0.001, respectively). Female teachers were more likely to receive professional lifestyle advice related to NCDs than male teachers. Although users of health services practiced self-health checks and received professional lifestyle advice more frequently than non-users, abnormal biomedical indicators were similarly shown among users and non-users of health services in both genders. In conclusion, high prevalence of abnormal biomedical indicators was indicated in both male and female teachers, although the specific abnormal biomedical indicators differed by gender. Users and non-users of health services presented a similar prevalence of these abnormal indicators. Understanding the differences in patterns of NCD risk factors is essential when developing gender-informed policies.

Keywords: biomedical indicators; non-communicable diseases; female teachers; lifestyle behaviors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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