Poor Health Behaviour in Medical Students at a South African University: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study

Bert Celie (), Ria Laubscher, Martin Bac, Marianne Schwellnus, Kim Nolte, Paola Wood, Tanya Camacho, Debashis Basu and Jill Borresen
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Bert Celie: Unité de Recherche en Physiologie Cardio-Respiratoire, Faculté des Sciences de la Motricité, Université Libre de Bruxelles, 1070 Bruxelles, Belgium
Ria Laubscher: Biostatistics Unit, South African Medical Research Council, Cape Town 7505, South Africa
Martin Bac: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Marianne Schwellnus: Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Kim Nolte: Sport, Exercise Medicine and Lifestyle Institute (SEMLI), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Paola Wood: Sport, Exercise Medicine and Lifestyle Institute (SEMLI), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Tanya Camacho: Sport, Exercise Medicine and Lifestyle Institute (SEMLI), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Debashis Basu: Department of Public Health Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
Jill Borresen: Sport, Exercise Medicine and Lifestyle Institute (SEMLI), Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 7, 1-9

Abstract: Background: Personal health behaviours and lifestyle habits of health professionals influence their counselling practices related to non-communicable diseases (NCDs). There are limited data on the prevalence of unhealthy lifestyle habits among medical students and the impact of acquired health knowledge throughout the curriculum. The aim of this study was to determine and compare the prevalence of modifiable behavioural NCD risk factors of medical students in different academic years at a South African tertiary institution. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study of 532 consenting medical students was conducted. Participants completed five online questionnaires regarding lifestyle behaviours (physical activity, dietary habits, smoking, alcohol consumption and sleep). Results: Lifestyle-related risk factors with the highest prevalence were poor sleep quality (66.0%), low levels of habitual physical activity (55.8%) and low-to-moderate diet quality (54.5%). There were no differences between academic years for all risk factors measured. Over 60% of the cohort had two or more NCD risk factors and this prevalence did not differ across the degree program with the acquisition of more health knowledge. Conclusion: Medical students have a high prevalence of poor sleep quality, low levels of physical activity and low-to-moderate diet quality, which does not appear to change over the course of their academic career. Sleep hygiene, regular physical activity and healthy nutrition should be targeted in intervention programmes and be more prevalent in the medical curriculum.

Keywords: non-communicable diseases; behavioural risk factors; medical students (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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