Assessment of Weight Status, Dietary Habits, Physical Activity, and Nutritional Knowledge Among Syrian University Students

Abstract

Introduction: University students are prone to suboptimal health and eating habits. Satisfactory knowledge about healthy food choices is essential for the adoption of behaviors necessary to lead a healthy lifestyle. A web-based cross-sectional study of Syrian university students was performed to assess their knowledge.

Methods: A self-administered dietary questionnaire was published online in Arabic. It included questions about demographic, dietary, lifestyle, health, fitness, hygiene, and knowledge characteristics.

Results: Only 17% of the sample have satisfactory eating habits; 55% of participants have a sedentary life style. 69%; of the participants had a good understanding of healthy and unhealthy eating habits and food; 75% of the participants indicated that they are able to use advice aimed at improving their health, 73% of the participants do not have barriers to change, and about 74% of the participants have good nutritional knowledge; 61% have good food safety knowledge, 33% of the participants have very good hygiene practices.

Conclusion: This study provided preliminary data on various factors that can affect students' health. We found that the BMI of most participating students is within the normal range. As for physical activity; males exercised more than females, and our study showed that about half of the students had a sedentary lifestyle with a higher percentage of females, and males also had better eating habits than females. As for nutritional knowledge, most of the participating male and female students had good nutritional knowledge.

Introduction

University students are prone to suboptimal health and eating habits. Satisfactory knowledge about healthy food choices is essential for the adoption of behaviors necessary to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was performed in Damascus, Syria on 1515 participants, between March and July 2022. A dietary questionnaire was published online in Arabic, and included sections on demographic information, eating habits, physical activity and lifestyle, healthy and unhealthy eating habits and food, self-efficacy, barriers to change, nutritional knowledge, food safety knowledge, food safety and behavior in hygiene practices.

Results

In the physical activity and lifestyle section, the number of students who sometimes practice sport was 630, or 42%, and the number of participants who never exercise was 371 students, or 24%. 590 people exercise 1–2 hours during the week, representing 39%, while 187 students exercise 3–4 hours during the week, which was 12%, and the least number of participants were exercising at a rate of more than 6 hours per week, at 10% only.

696 students use mobile and social networking sites during their spare time (46%), while 513 students listen to music, watch TV or use the computer during their spare time (34%), and 138 students walk during their spare time (9%). It reached 4%, and 3% practice sports and shopping during their spare time.

The lifestyle of the largest number of study participants was moderately active at 832 students (55%), and 472 students had a sedentary lifestyle (31%). (Table 4).

In the nutritional knowledge section of the questionnaire, the largest proportion of the participants answered that bread is the food that contains carbohydrates by 96%, and 629 students answered that white bread does not contain dietary fibers at a rate of 42%, and 536 students answered that meat is the food that does not contain carbohydrates. It contains 35% dietary fiber.

Grilled meat was the answer of the largest number of participants, totaling 662 students, to the question of the food that is least rich in fat by 44%, while 685 answered that pastry is the food that is least rich in fat by 45%.

When asked about the definition of biological foods, 609 students answered that they are foods grown without any use of chemical fertilizers at a rate of 40%, while 469 students of the participants answered that they are foods free of preservatives or additives at a rate of 31%, while the foods grown in greenhouses were an answer of 377 25% participant.

As for the definition of genetically modified foods, 1318 of the participants answered that they are foods in which different parts of the DNA were included by 87%, while the answers of the rest of the participants varied as foods free from toxic substances, foods imported from foreign countries, to foods free of toxic substances. pathogenic germs at rates of 3%, 6%, and 4%, respectively. (Table 8).

Discussion

Regarding physical activity and lifestyle in our study, although most of the participants had moderate physical levels, about half of the students displayed a sedentary lifestyle, with a higher percentage among females. In the Italian study, one third of the students showed a sedentary lifestyle with no proven relationship of lifestyle with gender. This finding can be interpreted as a typical adolescent habit consisting of spending long hours in activities that require sitting (watching TV, using the computer, listening to music, reading books, mobile use and social networking sites).

We also found that 81% of the students watch TV, use the computer, listen to music, read books, and use mobile and social networking sites during their spare time, while the Italian study indicated that 47.7% of the students do so during their spare time The American study indicated that more than half Students spend 3–4 hours during their day using the computer and social networking sites.

Nutritional knowledge is a predisposing factor for eating behaviors. In our study, we did not find a statistically significant relationship between nutritional knowledge and gender, while females in the Italian study and the American study had better knowledge than males, perhaps because they are more involved in preparing meals and generally take care of their body image more than males.

We found in our study that 74% of the students had good nutritional knowledge and only 10% had insufficient knowledge, while the Italian study found that 49.2% had good nutritional knowledge while 42.2% had insufficient knowledge.

Conclusion

This study provided preliminary data on various factors that can affect students' health. We found that the BMI of most participating students is within the normal range. As for physical activity; Males exercised more than females, and our study showed that about half of the students had a sedentary lifestyle with a higher percentage of females, and males also had better eating habits than females. As for nutritional knowledge, most of the participating male and female students had good nutritional knowledge.

Declarations

Ethics Statement:

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Syrian Private University.

Conflict of interest:

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this article. 

Funding

None

References

1. Giovanna Turconi, Marianna Guarcello, Laura Maccarini, Federica Cignoli, Stefania Setti, Rosella Bazzano & Carla Roggi (2008) Eating Habits and Behaviors, Physical Activity, Nutritional and Food Safety Knowledge and Beliefs in an Adolescent Italian Population, Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 27:1, 31–43, DOI: 10.1080/07315724.2008.10719672
2. Yahia N, Wang D, Rapley M, Dey R. Assessment of weight status, dietary habits and beliefs, physical activity, and nutritional knowledge among university students. Perspect Public Health. 2016 Jul;136(4):231–44. doi: 10.1177/1757913915609945. Epub 2015 Oct 16. PMID: 26475773.

Tables

Table 1

 Table 2