Abstract

Cardiovascular Disease Risk Behaviors of Nursing Students in Nursing School

Author(s):Nuray Turan, Gülsün Özdemir Aydın, Nurten Kaya

Objective: The aim of the study is to assess the risk assessment data in terms of students’ individual and health behavior characteristics in relation to cardiovascular diseases among nursing students. Methods: The population of this study, which had a descriptive and correlational design, comprised of 587 university students in a nursing school and the sampling group was formed by 351 university students who were willing and volunteered to participate. The data was collected via the structured questionnaire form and risk assessment data form. Results: It was found that most of the students (77.2%) were female, and 57.8% were in the 20-22 age groups. For the male students, the mean BMI was 23.62, while it was 22.55 for female students. When risky health behaviors of the students were examined, it was observed that 84.6% were non-smokers, 84.3% did not exercise regularly, 76.4% did not have alcohol abuse, 89.7% had the habit of drinking tea, while 52.7% had the habit of drinking coffee, and finally 66.7% did not have the habit of putting spread for bread in the breakfast. It was determined that the smoker students smoked on an average 12.36 cigarettes daily, drank black tea around glasses of 3.24 and approximately 1.36 cups of coffee in a day. Conclusions: Female students’ cardiovascular risk factors were found to increase. The results highlight the urgency of promoting preventive knowledge and practices against cardiovascular diseases among nursing students.

• PDF