Healthy lifestyles among women in reproductive age in urban Alexandria Egypt 2006: community based study

ABSTRACT

A healthy lifestyle [HLS] is a way of living that lowers the risk of being seriously ill or dying early. Researches have identified certain types of behavior that contribute to the development of non-communicable diseases and early death. The most important are dietary pattern, exercise, tobacco smoking and stress. This research aimed at measuring the prevalence of HLS among healthy non-pregnant women in reproductive age in Urban Alexandria, Egypt. A Cross sectional epidemiological study was carried out during the period December 2006- January 2007. The research included 600 healthy non-pregnant Women in reproductive age [excluding pregnant, lactating and those in the period of purperium]. They were selected using the cluster sampling technique from 30 clusters in Alexandria City [20 from each cluster]; giving a community based reliable and representative sample of the studied population. Women were interviewed using a specially designed interviewing format which contained questions about socio-demographic profile, dietary habits, exercise performance, tobacco use and psychosomatic manifestations of stress. Weight, height and blood pressure were measured. Weight, height, body mass index [BMI], systolic and diastolic blood pressure significantly correlates with age. There was a significant relation between smoking index and age. Two thirds of women <25 years were passively smokers. Eating habits significantly differed between women <25 years and those >25 years, with more skipping breakfast among younger women [<25 years]. Younger women [<25 years] were significantly more practicing exercise, using stairs and more frequently walking. The degree of development of psychosomatic manifestations significantly differed between young [<25 years] and old [>25 years] women. collectively, younger women had more healthy life styles [regarding smoking, exercise and stress] than older one. Education, occupation, marital status and place of origin were possible predisposing factors for such difference