Become A Member

Abdul Rauf¹, Mohsin Khan¹, Niama Khan², Haidar Zaman¹, Abdul Ali¹ and Faiza Khan³

ABSTRACT

Objective: Medical students are not only the last but also the most important chance for instruction in the field of healthy lifestyles and eating habits. The goal of the study is to assess and compare the lifestyle of medical students.

Study Design: Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study

Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at the Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad from March 2022 to April 2022.

Materials and Methods: Socio-demographic profile, body mass index (BMI), eating habits, sleeping hours, activity hours, exercise, and substance addiction was recorded in the pretest questionnaire.

Results: In this study, 270 participants were recruited, among which 58% (157) were males and 42% (114) were females. The majority of males fell in the category of overweight (38%) and obese (18%) while in the underweight category majority were female. Low income, increased sedentary hours, waking up late in the morning, and hostel residency are the significant risk factors for males’ overweight and obesity. Females significantly consume more fruits, legumes, milk, and fast food. 22% of individuals have clinically significant activity hours. The majority of males (10%) (15/156) have substance addiction while only 4% (5/114) of females use substance addiction.

Conclusion: Prevalence of pre-obesity and obesity is high among males. Regular consumption of healthy diets is low and there is a high rate of consumption of unhealthy foods among both genders. Activity hours are decreased in both genders while there is decreased prevalence of substance addiction as compared to medical students of other regions

Key Words: Body mass index (BMI), Gender, Dietary Habits, Activity hours

Citation of article: Rauf A, Khan M, Khan N, Zaman H, Ali A, Khan F. Gender Influences on Lifestyle Behaviors – A Cross-Sectional Study in the Public Sector Medical College of Abbottabad. Med Forum 2022;33(6):59-63.