Using the Exercise Is Medicine® on Campus Platform to Assess College Students’ Practice of Physical Activity in a Rural Setting

Background: The college setting offers public health educators and exercise scientists a favorable environment to implement wide-spread change in levels of physical activities. With over two-thirds of all adults in the U.S. now categorized as obese or overweight (CDC, 2015), it has become necessary to increase physical activity levels on college campuses. Exercise is Medicine® on Campus (EIM®-OC) is a national initiative to increase physical activity on college campuses by creating an environment to change the subjective norm of diminished exercise movement and fitness among adults. The purpose of the present study was to use the EIM®-OC platform to assess college students’ beliefs and practices of physical activity by implementing this program in a rural setting. Methods: Implementation of EIM®-OC was conducted over a one-week period. More than 1,000 participants joined in the events led by a multi-disciplinary team. Data collected included self-reported daily physical activities, campus commuting, and level of exercise intensity. Descriptive statistics and chi-square reported frequencies and statistical differences. Results: Overall, the campus turnout for EIM®-OC events was 7.6% higher than national norms. Physical inactivity was statistically different between racial groups (P=0.04). Males reported engagement in physical activity primarily for enjoyment and social interactions. Active transport was lower in the rural community than in urban counterparts. Conclusions: Findings from this study described the successful engagement of a midsized rural campus population in an EIM®-OC campaign. The study revealed self-reported physical activity patterns of students comparable to national averages; however there was a disproportionate number of African Americans who did not participate in any vigorous physical activity

Using the Exercise Is Medicine® on Campus Platform to Assess College Students’ Practice of Physical Activity in a Rural Setting

Background: The college setting offers public health educators and exercise scientists a favorable environment to implement wide-spread change in levels of physical activities. With over two-thirds of all adults in the U.S. now categorized as obese or overweight (CDC, 2015), it has become necessary to increase physical activity levels on college campuses. Exercise is Medicine® on Campus (EIM®-OC) is a national initiative to increase physical activity on college campuses by creating an environment to change the subjective norm of diminished exercise movement and fitness among adults. The purpose of the present study was to use the EIM®-OC platform to assess college students’ beliefs and practices of physical activity by implementing this program in a rural setting. Methods: Implementation of EIM®-OC was conducted over a one-week period. More than 1,000 participants joined in the events led by a multi-disciplinary team. Data collected included self-reported daily physical activities, campus commuting, and level of exercise intensity. Descriptive statistics and chi-square reported frequencies and statistical differences. Results: Overall, the campus turnout for EIM®-OC events was 7.6% higher than national norms. Physical inactivity was statistically different between racial groups (P=0.04). Males reported engagement in physical activity primarily for enjoyment and social interactions. Active transport was lower in the rural community than in urban counterparts. Conclusions: Findings from this study described the successful engagement of a midsized rural campus population in an EIM®-OC campaign. The study revealed self-reported physical activity patterns of students comparable to national averages; however there was a disproportionate number of African Americans who did not participate in any vigorous physical activity

Association Between Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Sleep Quantity in Pregnant Women

Introduction: To determine the association of fruit and vegetable consumption with overall sleep duration among pregnant women. Methods: Data from the 2011 and 2012 Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System (BRFSS) were used. All women (n = 2951) of childbearing age (18–44 years) who were pregnant and responded to all fruit and vegetable consumption and sleep duration questions were included. Covariates included age, race, education level, exercise, and marital status. Data were analyzed using linear and ordinal logistic regression. Results: Total daily fruit and vegetable consumption was not associated with sleep duration among pregnant women, controlling for confounders [β = −0.03, (−0.07, 0.00)]. Orange and green vegetable consumption were both inversely associated with sleep duration [β = −0.19, (−0.38, −0.01) and β = −0.20, (−0.33, −0.08) respectively]. Ordinal logistic regression found that the odds of meeting or exceeding sleep time recommendations increased slightly with each unit increase in total fruit and vegetable consumption [OR = 1.05 (1.003, 1.092)] and for every unit increase in fruit consumption [OR = 1.12 (1.038, 1.208)]. Women who exercised within the past 30 days reported approximately 20 min of additional sleep compared to those who did not [β = 0.32 (0.16, 0.49)]. Age, employment status, and marital status were also independently associated with sleep duration. Discussion: Sleep duration in pregnant women was associated with exercise and other demographic factors, but only mildly associated with fruit and vegetable consumption. Future research should investigate the effects of additional factors including sleep quality, gestational age, family status and other medications as potential confounders

The Impact of Health Behaviors on Perceived Physical, Mental, and Social Health Status Among College Students

A total of 3,094 students from multiple universities across the university participated in a 28-item questionnaire which assessed health, physical activity, nutrition, sleep, alcohol and tobacco usage and demographics. Results from the study showed that engaging in health behaviors had a significant positive impact on bother perceived physical and mental health status of participants. Physical activity and nutrition appeared to have the greatest influence on all three health status ratings, illustrating the importance of physical activity and nutrition in lifestyle behavior interventions in order to impact individuals’ health status