Comportamentos do estilo de vida, condição de peso e estresse percebido de estudantes universitários

Abstract

University entrance represents a moment of high vulnerability to stress since the students are faced with numerous changes, characterized by a new environment in which they are exposed to new behaviors and social contacts. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of perceived stress and its association with lifestyle-related behaviors and weight status. Methods: Cross-sectional study, with students from 21 full-time courses at a public Brazilian university, newcomers in the first semester of the years 2016, 2017 and 2018. Data were collected through a selfadministered questionnaire. Perceived stress, the dependent variable of the study, was assessed through the 10-item version of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Independent variables of this study were related to sleeping habits, heavy drinking, smoking, physical activity, sedentary behavior and weight status. Data analyses were stratified by sex. Chi square test was used in the bivariate analysis to verify associations between explanatory variables of interest and the assessed outcome. In the multiple analyses, mutually adjusted multinomial regression models were used to verify the association of independent variables with perceived stress. The level of statistical significance was set at 5%. Results: 1,640 university students were evaluated, and the average age was 18.7 years (SD = 1.52), 50.4% were female, 66.1% were from economic classes A and B and 72.4 % lived with their parents. Regarding the prevalence of perceived stress, it was observed that 16.9% of students experienced low stress, 34.1% moderate stress and 49.0% high stress, with a higher prevalence among females (64.9 vs 34.3 %; p <0.01). In the final model, among boys, the variables associated with moderate stress were smoking (ORadj = 2.6, 95% CI = 1.11; 6.24) and the excess of weight (ORadj 1.67, 95% CI = 1 , 08; 2.6), while high stress was associated with insufficient physical activity (OR = 1.62, 95% CI = 1.03; 2.55), short sleep duration (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.15; 2.81) and excess of weight (OR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.11; 2.71). For females, no variable was associated with the presence of moderate stress. Regarding high stress, only the weight condition remained associated, making students with excess of weight almost five times more likely to have high stress (OR = 5.7, 95% CI = 1.34; 24.52), when compared to those classified as low stress. Conclusions: The prevalence of perceived stress was high among university students, mainly in high level of stress and among females. Variables that were significantly associated with stress showed sex differences. Among male students, it was observed associations of unhealthy lifestylerelated behaviors and excess of weight with perceived stress, whereas among females, only excess of weight was associated with the assessed outcome.