Knowledge, Attitudes and Behavior Regarding Healthy Lifestyle and Cancer Prevention Among Romanian University Students

Abstract

Background: Healthy lifestyle promotion represents an important component of cancer prevention. The habits formed during youth have short term and long term influences on health promotion and disease prevention, while it is very probable that they will continue also during adulthood. Aim: The aim of this study is the assessment of knowledge, attitudes and behavior related to healthy lifestyle and cancer prevention among Romanian university students. Methods: A cross sectional study was performed in 2017 among 400 university students from the 4 main universities from Cluj-Napoca, a big university city situated in northwest Romania. It used anonymous questionnaires which investigated several issues related to smoking, nutritional habits, physical activity and weight management of students. Results: More than 80% of the students were aware about the relationship between the risk for cancer and smoking as well as physical activity related activity. Two thirds of the students knew the effect on cancer risk of overweight and consumption of fruits and vegetables, while one third were aware of the effects of red meat consumption. One out of five students were overweight or obese, while 37% were smokers (smoked in the last month). The majority did not meet the recommendations of eating 400 g of fruits and vegetables daily, while almost one third declared eating more than 500 g of red meat weekly. Conclusion: Future studies should focus on development, implementation and evaluation of educational programs for healthy lifestyle promotion and cancer prevention among Romanian university students.