Dietary Behaviors among Medical Students in the Middle East: Identifying Areas for Intervention

Aims: The objective of the study was to describe the Arabian Gulf University medical students dietary patterns and to provide recommendations for promoting healthy dietary behaviors and lifestyle among the students.
Study Design and Place of Study: A cross sectional study was conducted on medical students enrolled in the Arabian Gulf University in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Methodology: A self-administered anonymous questionnaire was used, which included questions on demography and dietary behaviors.
Results: Of the 535 medical students who were enrolled in years 1-4, 443 responded to the questionnaire thus resulting in a 82.8% response rate. One third of the students of both sexes had breakfast for 3-5 days per week. Seventy two percent of the males and 75.2% of the females had lunch for 6-7 days per week, while 23% of male students had lunch for 3-5 days per week compared to 19.4% of their female counterparts. Half of male and female students had dinner 6-7 days per week, and 39.7% of the males had it for 3-5 days per week compared to 28.9% of the female students. When looking at specific nutritional items, there were significant differences by gender, nationality, medical year and accommodation status.
Conclusion: Dietary patterns and behaviors cluster among students according to gender and medical year, nationality and accommodation status. Urgent interventions are needed at AGU to promote healthy dietary patterns and behaviors among medical students.