A A Cross Sectional Study on Physical Activity Profile Among Undergraduate Medical Students in a Private Medical College

Abstract

Background: WHO defines Physical activity as any bodily movement including during leisure time, for transport to get to and from places, or as part of a person’s work produced by skeletal muscles that requires energy expenditure. Medical students play an important role in promoting health education to the patients starting with their clinical training years. The main objective of this study was to assess practice and patterns of Physical activity and to study the Barriers and Motivating factors for Physical activity among undergraduate medical students. Objectives: To assess the practice and patterns of Physical activity among undergraduate medical students of Narayana Medical College (NMC), Nellore.; To study the Barriers and Motivating factors for Physical activity. Methodology: A Cross sectional study was conducted among 6^th Semester (MBBS Final Year Part-I) students of Narayana Medical College, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh for a period of one month i.e. April 2022 using a predesigned, semi structured questionnaire. Data was collected through Google forms, entered in Microsoft Excel and analyzed using “SPSS Version 25.0” software. Results: Out of 256 students, 179 students submitted their responses. 106 (59.2%) were females and 73 (40.8%) were males. 65 (36.3%) were currently practicing regular Physical activity out of which males are 41(63.1%) and females are 24 (36.9%). Conclusion: In our study, a smaller number of students were regularly practicing Physical activity.  Less number of females were physically active when compared to males.