Background Unhealthy behaviors are associated with high cardiovascular disease risk. The study aimed to assess the cardiovascular behavioral metrics according to the AHA, in Northwest Mexican adolescents. Methods The study was cross-sectional. Demographics, health history, and smoking data were collected by questionnaires. Dietary intakes were estimated using a FFQ, and physical activity using the IPAQ. Measurements included blood pressure and anthropometrics. Results Participants were freshmen students (n = 228, 55.6% men, age = 18.5±0.4 y). A higher significant prevalence of men indicated working, playing sports, and having a family history of hypertriglyceridemia (p < 0.05). Men showed significantly higher weight, height, BMI, waist, blood pressure, and lower total physical activity and body fat (p < 0.05). In dietary intakes, significant differences by sex were observed in nuts and seeds (1.1±0.6 and 0.9±0.6 oz/week, p = 0.042) and processed meats (749.8±639 and 503.6± 300.3 g/week, p = 0.002), with only fish and shellfish reaching AHA recommendations (513.1±450.7 and 501.7±428 g/week, p = 0.671), for men and women, respectively. Significant differences in prevalence between ideal, intermediate, and poor levels were shown for systolic (65.2%, 24.8% and 10%, p = 0.001) and diastolic (69.1%, 21.3% and 9.6%, p = 0.01) blood pressure, physical activity (25.9%, 43.9% and 30.3%, p = 0.005), and primary diet score (27.8%, 70.4% and 1.7%, p = 0.022). For individual foods, the lower prevalence in the ideal level was for sugar-sweetened beverages (10%, p = 0.013) and processed meats (4.8%, p = 0.208). Conclusions Northwest Mexican adolescents represent a high-risk group for developing long-term unhealthy habits. Their diet and physical activities make them vulnerable to cardiovascular complications early in adulthood.

Background Lifestyle changes when transitioning from high-school to college expose students to unhealthy behaviors associated with high cardiovascular risk. The study aimed to assess the cardiovascular behavior metrics according to the AHA criteria, in freshman college adolescents from Northwest Mexico. Methods The study was cross-sectional. Demographics and health history were collected by questionnaires. Four behaviors were evaluated: diet quality using a duplicated FFQ, physical activity (PA) using the IPAQ, smoking, and body mass index (BMI) percentile; blood pressure was measured as a biological metric. Intakes were averaged and summed for each food group; sodium and saturated fat were calculated using the Mexican System of Food Equivalents or the USDA Database. Metrics were categorized into ideal, intermediate or poor level according to the AHA criteria. Diet outliers (± 3 SD) were trimmed and data was tested for normality. Mean±SD were calculated for continuous and percentages for categorical variables. Chi-square test compared the prevalence of demographic variables and levels of each cardiovascular metric by sex. Independent T-test evaluated differences in anthropometrics, dietary, and PA by sex, and the prevalence of ideal vs. non-ideal dietary intakes. Results Participants were n = 228, 55.6% men, age = 18.5±0.4 y. A higher prevalence of men indicated working, playing sports, and family history hypertriglyceridemia (p < 0.05). Men showed higher weight, height, BMI, waist, blood pressure, and lower PA and body fat (p < 0.05). Concerning diet quality, significant differences by sex were observed in nuts and seeds (1.1±0.6 and 0.9±0.6 oz/week, p = 0.042) and processed meats (749.8±639 and 503.6±300.3 g/week, p = 0.002); only fish and shellfish group reached AHA recommendations (513.1 ± 450.7 vs. 501.7 ± 428 g/week, p = 0.671) for men and women, respectively. Ideal level was reached by 70.9% participants for BMI percentile, 87% for smoking, 67.2% for blood pressure, 25.9% for PA, and 12.2% for diet score. Regarding food groups and nutrients, the lower prevalence in the ideal level was for sugar-sweetened beverages (10%, p = 0.013) and processed meats (4.8%, p = 0.208), and the highest for fish and shellfish (87.8%, p = 0.281) . Conclusions The diet and PA patterns of Northwest Mexican freshman adolescents make them a high-risk group for developing long-term unhealthy habits and cardiovascular complications early in adulthood.

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