Prevalence of obesity and hypertension among University students’ and their knowledge and attitude towards risk factors of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of obesity and hypertension among University students’ and their knowledge and attitude towards risk factors of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Methods: A total of 610 male students were selected for present cross sectional study and their blood pressure (BP) and body mass index (BMI) was determined, other data was gathered through a questionnaire, and SPSS-16 was used for analyzing data.

Results: Out of 610 students, 7.5% were hypertensive (systolic 2.6% and diastolic 6.3%) while the BMI of 51.6% was in the normal range, 29.8% were overweight and 10.7% were moderately obese and 7.9% were severely obese. Majority of the participants considered that smoking, increased fatty food intake, obesity, high BP, and increased LDL-cholesterol level, are the main causes of the CVD. Most of the participants agreed that one should know his BP, blood sugar, serum cholesterol and one should maintain normal body weight and should do regular exercise. They were also aware that healthy lifestyle could prevent CVD. However, majority of the participants were not practicing healthy lifestyle.

Conclusion: A huge gap exists in the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding risk factors of CVD among the university students.