Iranian university students lifestyle and health status survey: study profile

Abstract

BackgroundThe physical health assessment of university students in Iran is a national large scale assessment examining health behaviors among tertiary education students. Understanding risky health behaviors which are the major sources of global mortality and morbidity in adulthood is the key objective of this assessment.MethodsIn academic year of 2012–2013, newly admitted students (N = 151,671) at 74 governmental eligible universities that had health center from 28 provinces were invited to participate in the health assessment program. The physical health behaviors of the students were evaluated by using questionnaire. The test-retest reliability method was applied to estimate the reliability of physical health questionnaire. After filling out the questionnaires, students were led to the examination room for the measurement of height, weight and blood pressure.ResultsFrom the total study population, 84,298 student’s ages between 18 and 29 years old, were participated in the health assessment. The mean response proportion was 63%. The mean age of students was 21.5 ± 4.01, with 49.20% percent being <20 years old. 32.31% were between 20 and 24 years, 13.44% between 25 and 29 years, 69% of the participants were undergraduate 34.9% were master’s students, and 2.9% were Ph.D. students. The mean BMI for total students was 22.5 ± 4.0 and regarding to gender, the mean BMI for male and female were 23.0 ± 4.1 and 22.2 ± 3.8 respectively.ConclusionAnalysis of student’s findings will generate multiple studies which report different aspects of physical health of Iranian university students who constitute a large proportion of young adult aged 18–29 years in the country. This assessment also provides opportunity to compare Iranian student’s behavioral patterns with the behavioral pattern of students worldwide.

Physical activity and the prevalence of primary headaches among a large population of university students: The MEPHASOUS study

“…This project was aimed to determine the contributing factors to the health problems and unhealthy behaviors of Iranian university students. Details on the study design, sampling methods, and data gathering in the MEPHASOUS project have been published previously [21,22]. In the MEPHASOUS project, all students from 74 governmental universities (in the provinces of Iran), related to the Ministry of Science and Technology (MST), were asked to take part in the study.…”

“…A previously published article revealed the reliability and validity of the questionnaire [21]. Students were asked to report their dietary intakes for fresh and dried fruits, vegetables, dairy products, fast foods, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and sweets during the last year.…”

Breakfast consumption is inversely associated with primary headaches in university students: The MEPHASOUS study

“…The purpose of this project was to evaluate the health status of Iranian university students. Detailed information about the study design, participants and data collection methods has been published elsewhere (26,27). Briefly, all students who were admitted to 74 governmental eligible universities (from 28 provinces of Iran), affiliated to the Ministry of Science and Technology (MST), were invited to participate in this project.…”

“…We used a self-administered dietary habits questionnaire to collect dietary data (26). The questionnaire was specifically designed and validated for the MEPHASOUS project.…”

“…The reliability and validity of the dietary habits questionnaire were examined in a separate study which was done on a subgroup of 70 students in the University of Tarbiat Modares (26). Based on the validation study, this questionnaire presented reliable and valid data on the dietary habits of university students.…”