Abstract
BackgroundThere have been very few studies analyzing the relationship of physical and mental health status with health behaviors and deployment status in Chinese navy personnel. Thus, we undertook this survey to assess this relationship and identify specific factors affecting the physical and mental health status.MethodsThe subjects enrolled in this study were selected from four units of the active-duty navy personnel in China, based on a cluster random sampling design. A total of 1200 Chinese navy personnel participated and completed the questionnaire survey that included veteran SF-36 form and a self-designed questionnaire regarding their sociodemographic characteristics, deployment status, self-rated health status and health behaviors. Totally 1200 questionnaires were distributed to different participants, while 1083 valid questionnaires were included in the final analysis. All data were analyzed using SPSS18.0 software.ResultsBased on the information provided by navy personnel, 17.82, 35.09 and 23.08% rated their health as excellent, very good and good, respectively. The mean score of physical component summary (PCS) and mental component summary (MCS) was 50.53 and 41.39, respectively. Length of service, binge drinking, regular drinking and BMI appeared to be associated with PCS score, while household income, binge drinking and BMI affected MCS score. Deployment status and smoking exhibited no significant association with PCS and MCS scores.ConclusionsOur study suggested that the sociodemographic factors like length of service and household income, along with behavioral risk factors like binge drinking, regular drinking and body mass index (BMI), seem to affect the physical and mental health status of Chinese navy personnel. However, additional data collection and more detailed analysis would still be required to develop a systematic, comprehensive and corresponding health education program to promote overall health status.
Highlights
There have been very few studies analyzing the relationship of physical and mental health status with health behaviors and deployment status in Chinese navy personnel
A total of 1200 questionnaires were distributed to different participants and they all submitted their answers, thereby indicating a response rate of 100%
The higher frequency of drinking or binge drinking correlated with lower physical component summary (PCS) and mental component summary (MCS) scores. This cross-sectional study has investigated various determinants affecting the health status of Chinese navy personnel, using a specific population sample with an emphasis on health related behavioral factors. This is the first study in China, to assess the navy personnel health status based on PCS and MCS scores, and their relationship with different health risk behaviors
Summary
There have been very few studies analyzing the relationship of physical and mental health status with health behaviors and deployment status in Chinese navy personnel. Many behavioral factors or health habits, such as cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, physical exercise, weight gain, eating habits and hours of sleep, were significantly associated with physical well-being and overall health. Among these factors, smoking and drinking are more prominent factors in the military population reported by many studies [2, 3]. Other health risks including weight gain in military personnel as reported by studies in other countries, primarily due to poor dietary patterns and sedentary lifestyles in some cases, have been strongly linked with increased prevalence of acute and chronic illness, injury, healthcare costs, disability and absenteeism [9,10,11]. No report was found regarding the association between weight gain and health status in Chinese naval personnel
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