Background:
Proper nutritional behaviors (dietary pattern and dietary habits) are one of the most important factors shaping our health, as they influence people’s physical and mental state and play an important role in maintaining a healthy body mass index. The poor dietary pattern among undergraduate medical students has been reported as a lifestyle challenge, they face while in medical school. The objective of our study was to assess the dietary patterns of medical students, determine the nutritional status among medical students and its association with physical activity.
Objectives:
The objectives of the study were to assess the dietary patterns and nutritional status among undergraduate medical students of Northwest School of Medicine, Hayatabad, Peshawar.
Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 218 undergraduate medical students during the 2021 academic year, including students from all study years of NWSM, data was collected through a self-structured questionnaire. Bodyweight and height were recorded using standard methods and body mass index (BMI) was calculated.
Results: In the present study, the mean Body Mass Index of participants was 22.635(±3.7835), 29(13.3%) underweight, 141(64.7%) normal, 41(18.8%) overweight, and 7 (3.2%) obese. Dietary analyses revealed food preferences among the 218 students, in which 78 preferred carbohydrates, 128 preferred proteins while 12 preferred fatty food. Similarly, the preference for fruits over vegetables was high, while the preference for white meat over red meat was more. Evaluating the involvement in physical activity 152 were having a high level of physical activity while 66 had a low level.
Conclusion: The overall dietary patterns were satisfactory among medical students of NWSM and also, they have prominent participation in physical activity which manifests their well-nourished status and healthy lifestyle.
Keywords: Nutritional status, dietary patterns, physical activity, medical students.
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