Lifestyle and Health Habits of a Canadian University Community

Abstract

In 2014, World Health Organization reported that more than 1.9 billion people were obese (World Health Organization, 2014). This epidemic is thought to cost $2 trillion globally every year (Dobbs et al., 2014). With the increase of the prevalence of obesity, there is a continuous search for effective obesity-prevention and health promotion strategies. In a Canadian university, Perusse-Lachance and colleagues (2010) showed that 22.9% of students and 37.3% of staff members were either overweight or obese. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of obesity, healthy lifestyle habits, and healthy environments among students and employees of a Canadian university. Respondents were students and employees during the 2016 fall semester (October). A web based-survey assessing lifestyle habits, such as physical activity and nutrition, was sent by email to all students (n = 15,000) and employees (n = 1,500). In total, 1,989 students (12.1%) and 484 employees (33.6%) completed the questionnaire. All data were analyzed using SPSS. Results showed that 32.7% of students and 44.5% of employees were overweight. Results also revealed that 55.2% of students and 44.9 % of employees were considered physically inactive. Regarding vegetables and fruit, 81.2% of students and 79.4% of employees did not meet the Canadian recommendations. The herein results suggest that overweight and obesity can be important concerns in a welleducated sample and they can be associated with various health-related behaviors.

Sugar sweetened beverages consumption among female university students

“…The prevalence of overweight and obesity was also lower in both faculties than in the abovementioned study [3]. This can be explained by the education level of the participants in this study, which positively influences the nutritional status [15], although in this study the results were lower compared to a Canadian college students' BMI values [16].…”

The impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on university students’ dietary intake, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour

“…In Canada, research on university students in a prepandemic condition has drawn attention to the reality that they are a vulnerable group for inadequate diet and physical activity. In a recent study at a university in the province of Quebec, 81.2% of students (n = 1989) surveyed did not consume the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables whilst 55.2% of students were not meeting the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Adults of 150 min of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week (Busque et al 2017). In an earlier study from another Quebec university, similar results were reported (Perusse-Lachance et al 2010).…”

The impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on university students’ dietary intake, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour

“…In Canada, research on university students in a pre-pandemic condition has drawn attention to the reality that they are a vulnerable group for inadequate diet and physical activity. In a recent study at a university in the province of Quebec, 81.2% of students (n=1989) surveyed did not consume the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables whilst 55.2% of students were not meeting the Canadian 24-Hour Movement Guidelines for Adults of 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week (Busque et al, 2017). In an earlier study from another Quebec university, similar results were reported (Perusse-Lachance et al, 2010).…”