Effect of academic stressors on eating habits among medical students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

In this 2019 cross-sectional study, a sample of 105 Arabian male medical students (mean age 21) were taken and examined on their dietary patterns in order to determine its association with stress. These future medics studying at Al-Imam Muhammed Ibn Saud Islamic University completed questionnaires to assess their diet. Freshmen were found to experience higher stress levels than sophomores and juniors, while increased stress related to greater consumption of unhealthy foods compared with lower stress status. The likelihood of these students eating unhealthy foods was positively influenced by the spread of fast-food restaurants. Aljaber et al. (2019) demonstrated the importance of stress-reducing interventions to help the students, leading the researchers to propose a way to decrease academic stress, by converting the longitudinal courses to blocks for example. The development of educational programs aimed at promoting healthy eating habits in medical students was also encouraged following these findings. [NPID: stress, Arab, medical student]

Year: 2019

Reference: AlJaber, M. I., Alwehaibi, A. I., Algaeed, H. A., Arafah, A. M., & Binsebayel, O. A. (2019). Effect of academic stressors on eating habits among medical students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Journal of family medicine and primary care, 8(2), 390–400. https://doi.org/10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_455_18