Dental students’ healthy lifestyle behaviors, physical activity levels and social media use: cross sectional study

Healthy lifestyle behavior includes appropriate behaviors such as eating habits, physical activity and weight control in order to stay healthy and prevent diseases. The aim of this cross-sectional study is to evaluate healthy lifestyle behaviors, physical activity levels and social media use of dental students.

An online questionnaire including demographic characteristics, International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Version (IPAQ-S) and Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile (HPLP) was filed by 420 dental students. The data were evaluated statistically.

The mean age was 21.6 ± 1.96 years and the majority of the students (71.7%) were living with their families. Obesity and overweight in males and underweight in females were statistically higher. There was no difference between the genders in terms of social media use. The most preferred applications were Instagram (92.7%), YouTube (85%) and Twitter (59.7%). In terms of IPAQ durations and HPLP scores, there was no gender difference. According to the IPAQ classification, while the majority of students (64.3%) were physically low active, 23.1% were physically inactive. As the total HPLP score increased, the total IPAQ score increased.

It is concluded that as the university students make up the majority of the young adults, encouraging their health-promoting behaviors is crucial for improving public health.