Food frequency intake and lifestyle among patients attending out-patient clinics in Qatar: a preliminary study

The objective of this study was to find out some risk factors that may be related to occurrence of chronic diseases among patients attending out-patient clinics in Qatar. All adult patients [20 years and over] attending the out-patient clinics in Hamad General Hospital for one week between 8 am and 12 pm were included. The total sample was 243 men and 214 women. The findings revealed that the daily consumption of fresh vegetables and fruits was low among both Qataris and non-Qataris. The proportion of current smokers was 28% in Qatari and 45% in non-Qatari men, while none of Qatari women reported smoking compared to 7.9% of non-Qatari women. The practicing of exersise was relatively high compared to other Gulf countries, ranging from 33.7% to 51.6%. This is because of two reasons; Firstly, the high proportion of chronic diseases among the patients and therefore they may be advised by the physicians to practice exercise to control these diseases. Secondly, the unclear definition of exercise which lead to obtaining misleading answers. Watching television for a long time [more than 3 hours/day] was observed among both Qataris and non-Qataris. However, the Qataris were more likely to watch television for a long duration than non-Qataris. Further comprehensive studies are urgently needed to explore the main risk factors associated with chronic non-communicable diseases in Qatar