Lack of physical activity, poor nutritional habits, and unmanaged stress have all been linked to health problems. The present study investigated attitude change toward exercise, good dietary habits, the importance of nutrition information, and stress management due to participation in the Fitness/Wellness course taught by the School of Physical Education at Ball State University. It also examined the effect of gender and class standing on the four dependent variables. A pretest/post-test design was utilized to administer the Attitude section of the Wellness Knowledge, Attitude, and Behavior Instrument. The population of 1213 included 59% females and 41% males. Sixty-six percent were freshmen, 22% sophmores, 7% juniors, and 5% seniors. A Paired T-Test showed an overall significant difference between pretest and post-test scores for all four dependent variables. P values for exercise, nutrition information, and stress were all 0.0001. The P value for dietary habits was 0.0021. A MANOVA analysis did not reveal a significant difference when gender or class standing were examined. P values consisted of .091 and .185 for gender and class standing, respectively. / Fisher Institute for Wellness

The purpose of this study was to provide quantitative data on members' opinions toward a university health promotion program. A survey research approach was used. A systematic sample of one-half of the Lifestyle Enhancement Center (LeClub) student membership list at Indiana State University was selected to participate in the study. Of the 667 questionnaires mailed, three hundred four subjects completed the questionnaire. The mean age of the subjects was 21 years. One hundred sixty eight subjects (55.5%) strongly agreed that they are receiving their money's worth at LeClub. Current LeClub members felt very strongly or agreed they would recommend LeClub to others (96.7%).T-tests and ANOVA were used to test the hypotheses. No statistically significant difference was found between males and females, among students of varying academic standing, and between new and prior members regarding opinions toward LeClub. A significant difference was found between various levels of participation and opinions regarding a health promotion program (P < 0.01). Those who used the facility the most had the strongest and most positive opinions towards the program. / Department of Physiology and Health Science

The present study examined the relationship between Pepper's (1942) worldview theory and health promoting behavior. Three hundred and twenty three college students at a medium-sized Midwestern state university were asked to complete a battery of inventories measuring worldview, health promoting behavior, socioeconomic status, alcohol consumption, demographic variables, and willingness to seek treatment from a variety of health service practitioners. It was hypothesized that there would be a positive relationship between worldview and health promoting behavior. Specifically, individuals endorsing an organismic worldview would engage in more health promoting behaviors than those endorsing a mechanistic worldview. It was also hypothesized that socioeconomic status and gender would be related to worldview and indirectly to health promoting behavior. Finally worldview was hypothesized to be related to subjects' willingness to seek treatment from a variety of "alternative" health providers. The data were analyzed by means of structural equation modeling using the SPSS and AMOS computer programs. The results of the study support the idea that a modest relationship exists between worldview and health promoting behavior. There was also a slight indirect effect of sex on health promoting behavior, with women more likely to endorse an organismic worldview and therefore more likely to engage in health promoting behavior than men. No relationship was found between socioeconomic status and health promoting behavior. In addition, significant correlations were found between certain health care providers over others. Specifically, an organismic worldview was significantly correlated with willingness to receive services from a reflexologist, a clinical or counseling psychologist, a herbalist, an aromatherapist, and a homeopath. / Department of Secondary, Higher, and Foundations of Education

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a school-based wellness program, Looking Good...Feeling Great! (Zacour & Zacour, 1991), on ninth grade students' wellness levels, and to evaluate student and teacher impressions of the program. Experimental groups (n = 62) from one urban and two suburban secondary schools participated in the four day 175 minute Looking Good...Feeling Great! program, while control groups (n = 37) from the same schools followed their regular academic schedules. All participants completed TestwellTM (National Wellness Institute, Inc., 1994), a wellness inventory for high school students, as a pretest, one week later as a posttest, and one and one half months later as a follow-up test. Student focus groups and teacher interviews were conducted after the posttest. Results showed that (a) experimental group wellness scores significantly increased from pretest to posttest (ES = .22), (b) experimental groups maintained their increased wellness levels one and one half months following completion of the program (ES = .24), and (c) there was no significant effect of gender on experimental group wellness scores, although females scored significantly higher than males overall. In general, students and teachers conveyed favourable impressions of the program. However, somewhat negative impressions of the program from the students and teacher at the urban secondary school imply that this type of school may benefit from a wellness program that better suits the needs of its constituents. The results indicate that the Looking Good...Feeling Great! program can be an effective tool in helping adolescents acquire healthy lifestyles through the enhancement of wellness levels.

Research has clearly shown that all individuals will benefit from regular physical activity. Unfortunately, young adults including college and university students are not physically active on a regular basis worldwide. In the developing world particularly in Sub- Saharan Africa, physical inactivity along with tobacco use, poor diet and nutrition are increasingly parts of today&rsquo / s lifestyle. Physical activity declines with age and the most important decline appear to be during the transition period from high school to university and during university years. The aim of this study was to assess the level of physical activity, to investigate the perceived constraints to physical activity and to determine whether socio-demographic characteristic have an influence on participation in physical activity and perceived constraints to physical activity among paramedical institutions students in Uganda. A cross-sectional study with descriptive quantitative design was conducted. Four hundred (400) paramedical institution students were selected using a stratified random sampling technique. A self-administered questionnaire adopted from the literature was used to collect the data. A response rate of 90% was obtained. Descriptive and inferential statistics using the statistical package for social sciences were used to analyze the data. The relationships and associations between different variables were determined by carrying out significant tests using chi-square tests. Alpha level was set at 0.05. The mean age of the sample was 22.44 years (SD = 2.03). Males constituted 73.9% and females constituted 26.1% of the sample. Students from eight (8) health professional courses participated in the study. Over half (59%) of participants were classified as physically active and 41% were classified as inactive or sedentary. For male participants, lack of the right equipment to exercise and wanting to do other things in their free time were perceived as the major constraints to physical activity. For female participants, lack of motivation and tiredness after exercise were perceived as the major constraints to physical activity. The findings of this study demonstrate that there is an influence of socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, year of the study and different departments/schools on participation in physical activity and perceived constraints to physical activity. They also indicate the need of health promotion intervention aiming at promoting physical activity among paramedical institution students in Uganda.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Michigan, 1990.

Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 46-55).

Thesis (MSc (Biomedical Technology))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2019 / Introduction: The provision of access to safe and effective contraception is a critical element in the health of women that enables them to make choices about their fertility. This element of control empowers them and indirectly enables them to access better social and economic opportunities. Hormonal contraceptives are a convenient, effective and relatively safe method of fertility control. Extensive research has been done on the effects of hormonal contraceptives on undesirable metabolic and haemostatic changes, but data on the relationship between oxidative stress and oral contraceptives is scarce and remains subject to debate. Aging of the skin due to oestrogen loss at menopause is thought to include atrophy, decreased collagen content, water content, and sebaceous secretions, loss of elasticity, wrinkling, poor wound healing and manifestations of hyperandrogenism. A number of studies have shown that oestrogens serve many important beneficial and protective functions in skin physiology. Despite extensive clinical experience, many metabolic effects of oral contraceptive treatment remain to be explored. The effects of progesterone on body weight and composition are of interest from several standpoints. Since hormonal contraceptives are widely used, it is important to investigate the effect thereof on oxidative status, skin parameters and anthropometric indicators, to enable women make informed choices about the use of contraceptives, or to adapt their lifestyle if necessary. The aim of the present study was therefore, to assess certain effects of contraceptives in a student population at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT). Objectives of the study: To determine the differences in skin health, anthropometric \parameters and oxidative stress status in female university students using various hormonal contraceptives versus non-contraceptive users. Research design: The study adopted a quantitative approach to examine a crosssectional research sample in order to provide a snapshot of the population at a particular time. Concenting participants were selected through the use of questionnaires aimed at ascertaining the type of contraceptive used as well as general health and lifestyle patterns. Blood samples were collected and the antioxidant status was determined. Body composition and skin analysis was conducted on each of the participants in the selected groups and the results were compared to determine the differences between contraceptive and non-contraceptive users. Results: With regards to oxidative stress status, the results indicated a significant increase in superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities within the triphasic contraceptive group compared to the monophasic contraceptive group, suggesting higher levels of oxidative stress in monophasic contraceptive groups. There was also an increase in lipid peroxidation (TBARS) for the triphasic contraceptive group when compared to the control, monophasic contraceptive and injectable contraceptive groups respectively, indicative of increased oxidative stress levels in the triphasic contraceptive group. In this study, skin parameters evaluation revealed that there was a general increase in the presence of erythema in the monophasic contraceptive group compared to the control; injectable contraceptive; implant contraceptive and triphasic contraceptive groups, symptomatic of higher vascular activity in the monophasic group. Melanocyte activity measured in the forehead, cheek and chin areas were also significantly increased when the monophasic contraceptive group was compared to the control and other contraceptive groups, characterised by the pigmentation pattern of chloasma/melasma known to be caused by hormones. The hydration measurements were significantly increased in the implant contraceptive group compared to the control and monophasic contraceptive groups. Furthermore, a significant increase in hydration was evident in the injectable contraceptive group when compared to the control and monophasic contraceptive groups. Injectable contraceptives and implant contraceptives mainly contain progesterone which has been proven to combat signs of aging and increase collagen and elastin in the skin. With respect to anthropometric measurements, there was a significant increase in the measurement of waist to hip ratio in the implant contraceptive group compared to the control group (non-contraceptive). Progesterone influence on adipose tissue distribution indicated a more significant increase of adipose tissue in the abdominal region. Conclusion: In this study there was some evidence that the type of hormonal contraceptive used does have significant effects on the variables tested in the population sample. These effects are dependent on the composition of the contraceptive and the levels of progesterone and/or oestrogen.

Student health consists of several professions that together build a team with several professions. The team works to promote students' mental and physical health. The goal for student health is that all participating professions work together to ensure that all students feel involved, valuable and motivated to achieve the official school goals. Depending on how well this teamwork operates, it can either be an enabling or hindering factor for the student's participation in school activities. This study aims to investigate how a student health team can best work to create the sense of context that the school requires both by law and its required values. The study is based on two popular science books about health and unhealthiness in school and a fiction book with a "case description" of two teenage girls from different psychosocial environments feeling mentally ill. The results of the study show that student health teams can function well as there is a clear structure and determination among all participating professions. Some issues the popular science books discussed were the need to focus on health promotion and to provide adequate time for the required preventive work. A further development of this study is recommended to gain an understanding of the individual thoughts in student health and thereby make a comparison with the study that we have done through our interpretation of the literature.

The purpose of this investigation was to assess the association between body mass index as well as race/ethnicity and established correlates of disordered eating including drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction, bulimia, dietary restraint and social physique anxiety in male and female college students. Difference between actual, desirable and perceived body weight was also assessed. ANOVA suggested that as actual body mass index increased, in general, attitudes and behavior toward weight, body shape and eating increased. A two-tailed t-test suggested that males and females differed significantly with regards to attitudes and behavior toward weight body shape and eating. ANOVA indicated that little to no association existed between race/ethnicity and established correlates of disordered eating.