Lifestyle choices and prevalence of chronic noncommunicable diseases among primary healthcare physicians in the Jazan Region, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: One of the factors that may influence patient adherence to a healthy lifestyle is the adherence of their treating physicians to a healthy lifestyle. This study aimed to measure the lifestyles of primary healthcare center (PHCs) physicians in the Jazan region and to identify the prevalence of diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and obesity among this sample of physicians. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Jazan region which lies in the southwest of Saudi Arabia. Data were collected via a questionnaire completed during personal interviews. The questionnaire included several components related to physicians’ demographics, lifestyles, and history of chronic non-communicable diseases. Descriptive statistics were performed to summarize the overall lifestyle of the physicians and disease prevalence. Results: A total of 234 physicians agreed to participate in this investigation. The age of the participants varied between 25 and 65 years, with a median age of 38. Almost 70% of the physicians reported BMI levels higher than 25, indicating a high prevalence of overweight and obesity. Twenty-seven physicians reported no engagement in any type of exercise while the majority reported engagement with low-intensity exercise. While 56% reported daily consumption of vegetables, only 41.8% of them reported daily consumption of fruits. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia was 10.3%, 8.5%, and 3.4%, respectively. Conclusion: Poor lifestyle choices of the physicians may indicate limited engagement of the physicians in providing effective lifestyle counseling to patients visiting their clinics in PHC settings of the studied community.

Lifestyle Counseling for Patients with Type 2 Diabetes in the Southwest of Saudi Arabia: An Example of Healthcare Delivery Inequality Between Different Healthcare Settings

“…28 Additionally, an investigation conducted in the Jazan region involving 234 PHC physicians detected a high prevalence of overweight and obese physicians and limited engagement in a healthy lifestyle after measuring their physical activity and dietary habits. 29 Similar observations were noted among healthcare workers in Riyadh in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia, indicating limited engagement in a healthy lifestyle among healthcare workers. 30,31 This highlights the importance of considering the influence of healthcare workers' attitudes toward and adherence to a healthy lifestyle and the possible consequences when providing lifestyle counseling to their patients with type 2 diabetes.…”

Assessment of factors influencing the contribution of primary healthcare physicians in prevention of type 2 diabetes in South of Saudi Arabia

“…Table 1 is reproduced from publication by Gosadi et al . [ 12 ] The median age of the physicians was 38 years and the proportions of male and female physicians were similar. The majority of recruited physicians were Sudanese (55%), followed by Saudi physicians (12%).…”

Practicing healthy lifestyle behaviors among physicians in public primary healthcare centers, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

“…Similarly, previous studies showed that 63.2% of physicians at 3 PHC centers of National Guard Health Affairs in Jeddah were overweight and obese, with similar chronic diseases (Alshareef et al, 2019) as found in our study. A study involving 234 physicians in the Jazan region, Saudi Arabia, similarly found that the majority (70%) were obese and overweight and exercised at low intensity (Gosadi et al, 2020). Though similar chronic diseases were reported among physicians in Bahrain, overweight and obesity presented among 72.5% of Bahraini physicians (Borgan et al, 2015).…”