Academic Journal
Healthy living awareness among health sciences students in Turkey: a cross-sectional study.
| Τίτλος: | Healthy living awareness among health sciences students in Turkey: a cross-sectional study. |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Yalcin GC; Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Midwifery, Mardin Artuklu University, Mardin, Turkey. gulcanciftcioglu@gmail.com. |
| Πηγή: | BMC public health [BMC Public Health] 2026 Aug 06; Vol. 26 (1). Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Aug 06. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 100968562 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1471-2458 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14712458 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Public Health Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001- |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Students, Health Occupations*/psychology , Students, Health Occupations*/statistics & numerical data , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice* , Healthy Lifestyle*, Humans ; Turkey ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Female ; Male ; Young Adult ; Adult ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Universities ; Academia ; Adolescent |
| Περίληψη: | Background: Health sciences students need strong health awareness to promote healthy lifestyles. Objectives: This descriptive cross-sectional study aimed to assess the level of awareness about healthy living among students enrolled in health sciences programs in Turkey. It also examines the differences according to demographic and academic variables. Methods: The research was conducted with 493 students from health sciences departments at various universities in Turkey between January and March 2023. Data were collected through an online survey consisting of a demographic information form and the Healthy Living Awareness Scale (HLAS), which consists of a 15-item, 5-point Likert scale with four sub-dimensions. The normality of numerical data was calculated using the Shapiro-Wilk test. We also used independent samples t-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compare group differences. A p-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The mean total HLAS score was 56.43 ± 10.84, representing a moderate level of awareness about healthy living among participants. Significant differences were found in HLAS scores across age groups (p = 0.003) and academic departments (p = 0.014). Also, higher grade levels were associated with significantly increased scores in total HLAS and its sub-dimensions, including change, socialization, and responsibility (p < 0.05). Among the sub-dimensions, the highest scores were observed in the change domain, which was followed by socialization, responsibility, and nutrition. Conclusion: Awareness levels were moderate, and increased with academic progression. Research indicates that increasing the strength of undergraduate curriculum has potential for improving future health care providers' understanding of how to live a healthy lifestyle. (© 2026. The Author(s).) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations. Ethics approval and informed consent statements: This study was approved by the Non-Interventional Clinical Research Ethics Committee of Mardin Artuklu University (Approval No. 2023/2–39, dated 13 February 2023). Written informed consent was obtained electronically from all participants before data collection. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Health Education; Health Knowledge; Health Occupations; Health Promotion; Lifestyle; Students |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20261015 Date Completed: 20261015 Latest Revision: 20261016 |
| Update Code: | 20261016 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC13663263 |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s12889-026-28598-1 |
| PMID: | 42875752 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1471-2458 |
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| DOI: | 10.1186/s12889-026-28598-1 |