Effect of a Lifestyle Medicine Program to Reduce the Risks of Cardiovascular Disease Among Young Male Adults in a Chosen Residential School in the Philippines

DOI

10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.051How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Lifestyle medicine; Cardiovascular risks; Young adult male; Lifestyle behavior

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) remain to be the leading cause of death worldwide. Studies show that men manifest symptoms ten years earlier than women and that men are less likely to seek healthy lifestyle behaviors compared to women. This study aimed to determine the effects of a lifestyle medicine program to reduce the risks of cardiovascular disease among males in a chosen residential school in the Philippines. A quasi-experimental, mixed method design was conducted among 32 young male adults, chosen through purposive sampling. The Transtheoretical Model guided this study. Data were gathered through pre and post quantitative and qualitative questionnaires, health assessments, in-depth interviews, and journals. The findings showed that young males have CVD risks of 66.7%, 100% of the participants have high blood pressure and 50% were overweight. The pre-intervention lifestyle risk factors gathered through qualitative data showed inadequate fruit intake, high intake of processed food, decreased physical activity, and sleeping late. An intervention program entitled “Young at Heart” was conducted for two months which consisted of lifestyle coaching, interactive lectures, actual demonstrations, focused-group discussion and personal journaling. Post intervention result showed decreased CVD risks, from 66.7% to 16.7%, decreased Blood Pressure from 100% to 33.4% and from 50% high Body Mass Index to 100% normal measurement. Moreover, qualitative data showed improved dietary habits, increased physical activity and improved sleeping habits. While the lifestyle program was successful it needs sustainability. It is recommended that this type of lifestyle medicine program be made available to students over a long period of time.

Copyright

© 2021 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press International B.V.

Open Access

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Mary Jane Botabara-Yap
AU  - Donna Mae Rodriguez
AU  - Pamela Hendra Heng
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/12/01
TI  - Effect of a Lifestyle Medicine Program to Reduce the Risks of Cardiovascular Disease Among Young Male Adults in a Chosen Residential School in the Philippines
BT  - Proceedings of the 1st Tarumanagara International Conference on Medicine and Health (TICMIH 2021)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 302
EP  - 309
SN  - 2468-5739
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.051
DO  - 10.2991/ahsr.k.211130.051
ID  - Botabara-Yap2021
ER  -