Nivel de actividad física en los estudiantes de Medicina de primer y segundo año de la Universidad Nacional de Asunción

Abstract

 

Introduction: Medical students face an intense academic load and high levels of stress due to the demands of their career. This often leads them to prioritize studying over physical activity. The physical and mental exhaustion they experience can make it difficult for them to find the energy and motivation to exercise. Additionally, time constraints, due to changing schedules and the need to prepare for exams, make it difficult for them to participate in physical activity on a regular basis.
Therefore, this research aimed to determine the percentage of first and second year students of the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the National University of Asunción who do or do not practice physical activity, as well as the perceived benefits and barriers they experience in doing so.
Materials and methods: Cross-sectional, descriptive and observational study, with a quantitative approach, carried out at the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the National University of Asunción. A digital survey via Google Forms was used to collect data, which were loaded into a database in Excel format for subsequent analysis.
The data collected was used anonymously, voluntarily and exclusively for the purposes of this research.
Results: 179 first and second year UNA medical students were surveyed, 114 females. The majority of respondents were between the ages of 18 and 21. 62% of those surveyed said they engaged in regular physical activity and 38% did not. Differences were observed in terms of the frequency of physical activity; However, there was a predominance in terms of the type of physical activity performed: weight lifting (57.7%). Regarding the benefits that physical activity provides, the control of body weight stood out (81.1%). Regarding the reason why there are students who do not do physical activity, a predominance (82.4%) was seen due to lack of time. It was also observed that all students agree that performing physical activity regularly can provide them with important benefits.
Conclusion: The majority of the medical students of first and second year from the Universidad Nacional de Asuncion, engage in physical activity regularly, experiencing benefits such as stress reduction and improvements in their focus. Regarding students who don't engage in physical activity, the main obstacle they face is lack of time because of the academic demand
Both f+groups of students are aware of the importance and benefits of engaging in physical activity.