Beeinflussen Herkunft und Studienort das Gesundheitsverhalten angehender Ärzte? Eine Querschnittserhebung

Background: The individual lifestyles of medical students have a direct influence on later medical practice as health advocates. The healthier medical students’ lifestyles are, the more extensively they will later inform themselves about prevention and health promotion. Thus, the influence of origin (eastern vs. western Germany) and place of study (eastern vs. western Germany) on the lifestyle of the physicians-to-be was investigated. Materials and methods: A quantitative cross-sectional survey on the health behavior of medical students (body weight, exercise, nicotine consumption, alcohol consumption) was conducted in Hannover and Halle using a standardized questionnaire. Results: Specific (individual) risk factors such as nicotine or alcohol consumption, as well as the intensity of physical exercise, can depend on the place of study. Since geographical origin influences place of study, it has an important – indirect – influence on the risk behavior of medical students. Conclusions: The lifestyle of medical students is overall better than that of their peers. This lifestyle has a direct influence on later medical practice (prevention and health promotion). However, students and physicians must be made aware of the clearly less favorable lifestyles of their (future) patients and need to develop an understanding for these situations.