Features of the first-year students’ lifestyle at the faculty of medicine: an observational study

Introduction. Our analysis of studies of the lifestyle of medical students has shown that the students keep an unhealthy lifestyle with some differences in their lifestyle components, regions, and course of university study. Therefore, it is of scientific and practical interest to identify and analyze some factors which influence the formation of a healthy lifestyle for future medical doctors. The aim of the study is to investigate the lifestyle characteristics of the first-year students at the Faculty of Medicine and identify some key predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle. Methods. An observational cross-sectional study of the first-year students of the Medical Faculty at the Kabardino-Balkarian State University named after I.I. HM. Berbekov was conducted. The selection of units of the observation was carried out by the nesting method while maintaining the proportion characteristic of the general population. The sample set reflected the properties of the general population both quantitatively and qualitatively. The study included an anonymous survey using a specially designed questionnaire containing 80 questions to study socio-demographic characteristics that make up lifestyle (physical activity, daily routine, diet schedule and diet composition, the presence of bad habits), well-being, attention to one’s own health, using online Google Forms Designer. Results. More than half of the students surveyed (51.6%) consider their lifestyle not fully consistent with the principles of a healthy lifestyle. Herewith, 75.4% of the students did not adhere to the proper diet, 72.1% of them did not follow the daily scheduled routine, 24.9% of them slept less than 6 hours at night, 20.4% of the students did not engage in any type of physical activity. The number of smoking students was 8.9%, those drinking alcohol was recorded to reach 9.7%. Using the method of multiple logistic regression analysis for predicting lifestyle changes, the key predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle were identified as follows: the presence of bad habits, the number of cigarettes smoked and an unhealthy diet. Conclusion. The completed study made it possible to reveal the characteristics of the lifestyle of the first-year students of the Faculty of Medicine, identify significant predictors of an unhealthy lifestyle, and produce a social profile of a first-year student at the Faculty of Medicine. The results obtained by us can be used to adapt the curricula of the Medical Faculty for the formation of a healthy lifestyle among the students.