The health of Saudi youths: current challenges and future opportunities

BMC Family Practice

Research Article

Farah Daoud¹  Ali H. Mokdad¹  Charbel El Bcheraoui¹  Maziar Moradi-Lakeh¹  Marwa Tuffaha¹  Mohammad A. Al Mazroa²  Ziad A. Memish²  Mohammed Basulaiman²  Abdullah A. Al Rabeeah²  Mohammad Al Saeedi² 

[1] Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, University of Washington, 2301 Fifth Ave, Suite 600, 98121, Seattle, WA, USA;Ministry of Health of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 12613, Assadah, Al Murabba Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;

关键词: Adolescent;    Youth;    Health status;    Risk factors;    Saudi Arabia;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12875-016-0425-z

 received in 2015-07-29, accepted in 2016-02-29,  发布年份 2016

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe health status of the young people is an important indicator for future health and health care needs of the next generation. In order to understand the health risk factors of Saudi youth, we analyzed data from a large national survey in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.MethodsThe Saudi Health Information Survey sample included 2382 youths aged 15 to 24 years old. The questionnaire included information on socio-demographic characteristics, risk factors, risky behaviors, chronic conditions, functional status, health care utilization, and anthropometric and blood pressure measurements.ResultsOnly 45.9 % of men and 48.4 % of women had normal body mass index (BMI). Men were more likely than women to smoke cigarettes or shisha. The prevalence of daily consumption of at least five servings of fruits and vegetables was 6.6 %. The prevalence of no or insufficient physical activity was 41.8 % in men and 75.6 % in women (P < 0.001). Around 40 % of men and 25 % of women had abnormal blood pressure. Mean BMI and prevalence of insufficient physical activity, current smoking, and hypertension was higher in 20-to 24-year-olds than younger ages. Women were more likely to report that they never use seatbelts (82.2 % vs. 65.4 %).ConclusionsThe prevalence of modifiable risk factors and risky driving behaviors is very high among Saudi youth. If these current behaviors are not reversed during this crucial age period, the burden of disease and injuries will rise in the future. Our findings call for developing health prevention programs for youths in Saudi Arabia.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Moradi-Lakeh et al. 2016