Clustering of physical inactivity and low fruit and vegetables intake and associated factors in young adults

Abstract

A B S T R A C T ObjectiveTo investigate the cluster of physical inactivity and low fruit and vegetable intake and the associated factors in university students. MethodsThis cross-sectional study included a representative sample (n=717) of Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco students. Low fruit and vegetable intake was defined as an intake of less than five servings a day and physical inactivity was defined as exercising less than 150 minutes a week. The independent variables were gender, age, socioeconomic status, school year, shift, and study time. Clustering was determined by comparing the observed prevalence with the expected prevalence for all possible risk-factor combinations. Logistic regression analysis, performed by the software Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 17.0 with a significance level of 5% (p<0.05), considered the presence of both risk behaviors adjusted to the independent variables. ResultsThe prevalence of low fruit and vegetable intake was 81.7% (CI95%=78.1-84.3) and of physical inactivity was 65.8% (CI95%=62.2-69.4). Most students (58.6%, CI95%=55.3-62.2) were exposed to both risk factors simultaneously, while 11.0% (CI95%=8.9-13.5) were exposed to neither. Full-time students have a risk 1.45

Exercise and fruit/vegetable intake in a sample of Brazilian university students: association with nutritional status

“…It should be emphasized that both outcomes remained significantly associated, even after adjustments for control variables. In this case, lower risk of exposure for the occurrence of excess body weight among university students who most frequently perform physical activity and consume fruits/vegetables is consistent with evidence shown by other studies involving different experimental designs and statistical treatment 9,28 .…”

“…Consistent with the results found in Brazilian studies 9,[21][22][23] and different regions worldwide 17,24,25 , the frequency of fruit/vegetable intake was higher among women and older university students. In fact, culturally speaking, the greater interest in questions about diet, health and beauty creates more concern about the consumption of low-calorie foods, which can have a positive influence on women's eating habits 25 , thus justifying the differences in fruit/vegetable intake between genders.…”

“…Although possible methodological differences and influences resulting from cultural characteristics, climate and food production and commercialization conditions can be found, this result corroborates previous estimates found in studies involving the Brazilian population in general 22 and, more specifically, the population of university students 4,9,22,23 . However, this was significantly lower than the findings from studies performed in developed countries 24 .…”

“…Additionally, the majority of adolescents tend to be simultaneously exposed to both risk behaviors 9 and these habits are likely to be maintained throughout life 6 , thus contributing to the increase in the chance of onset and development of overweight and non-communicable chronic diseases, understood as the main causes of disabilities in adulthood 10 .…”

“…In this sense, behavior adopted by university students represents a great challenge for public health, as they are exposed to several risk and behavioral factors, which can lead to major changes in lifestyle and affect health in the long term 2,6,9 . Thus, to understand the lifestyle of university students, especially health-risk and protective behaviors, it is relevant to plan future actions and possible decision-making in the implementation of health promotion and education programs in the university environment, in addition to providing resources to change behaviors that pose a risk to university students.…”