Foulger Lauren, Page Randy M, Hall P Cougar, Crookston Benjamin T, West Joshua H
Department of Health Science, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602, USA.
Int J Adolesc Med Health. 2013;25(1):97-105. doi: 10.1515/ijamh-2013-0014.
Adolescence is an important stage of life when health behaviors and attitudes are established. The purpose of this research was to assess health risk behaviors among Guatemalan students in both an urban and rural school. Items were adapted from the Global School-based Student Health Survey and were used to measure and compare the prevalence of risk behaviors between these two demographically and culturally distant school-based samples. In general, the prevalence of adolescent health risk behaviors in both schools was lower than other Latin American countries. Many health risk behaviors were associated with location (urban vs. rural settings) and/or gender. Tobacco use, alcohol use, and sexual activity were higher among urban students. Boys were more likely than girls to use alcohol, use tobacco, and be sexually active. In addition, the prevalence of mental health problems was higher among girls and rural students. These findings imply that measures should be taken to design effective and appropriate health strategies for adolescents attending these schools. Health promotion programs in schools and communities should assist the youth in developing positive health behaviors and cultivating healthy lifestyles in an effort to reduce risk behaviors among adolescent populations. Further research is needed to extend our understanding of risk factors of health behavior in these adolescent populations and to identify effective preventative approaches and strategies that specifically cater to the location and culture of the students.
青春期是确立健康行为和态度的重要人生阶段。本研究的目的是评估危地马拉城乡学校学生中的健康风险行为。这些项目改编自全球学校学生健康调查，用于测量和比较这两个人口统计学和文化背景不同的学校样本之间风险行为的流行情况。总体而言，两所学校中青少年健康风险行为的流行率低于其他拉丁美洲国家。许多健康风险行为与地点（城市与农村环境）和/或性别有关。城市学生中的烟草使用、酒精使用和性活动更为普遍。男孩比女孩更有可能饮酒、使用烟草和进行性活动。此外，女孩和农村学生中心理健康问题的患病率更高。这些发现意味着应采取措施为就读于这些学校的青少年设计有效且合适的健康策略。学校和社区的健康促进项目应帮助年轻人养成积极的健康行为并培养健康的生活方式，以努力减少青少年群体中的风险行为。需要进一步研究以扩展我们对这些青少年人群健康行为风险因素的理解，并确定专门针对学生所在地点和文化的有效预防方法和策略。
