Developing a children’s health risk behaviour prevention program targeting grade 4–7 learners in the western cape, South Africa: a study protocol

Background Health risk behaviour among South African youth is a significant public health concern. Despite a societal mind shift to educating the public on the prevention of health risk behaviour, behavioural change is not progressing at the rate needed to influence health risk behaviour positively. The project aims to explore behavioural trends and willingness to engage in risky behaviour among senior primary school children. Secondly, to design a health risk behaviour prevention program which adequately equips senior primary school children with the necessary life skills to alter risk behaviour engagement. Methods The study will make use of an intervention mapping framework and a sequential, explanatory mixed methods design. Stratified random probability sampling will be used to select three primary schools in the region. Nonprobability purposive sampling will be used to select the stakeholders participating in the focus group sessions. Data collection consists of five phases with the results of each stage informing the structure and application of the next. Phase 1 - baseline data collection (needs analysis) using the child health risk behaviour survey. Phase 2 - focus group interviews. Phase 3 - a systematic review of the literature for result analysis triangulation. Phase 4 – the development of the child risk behaviour prevention program based on the outcomes of phases 1,2 and 3. Phase 5 - implementation of the program. Descriptive statistics will be used to analyse the quantitative data. Chi-square, ANOVA and multiple regression analyses will be used to predict health risk behaviour engagement. Thematic analysis will be used to analyse qualitative data. Discussion To our knowledge, this is the first study that would attempt to establish a health risk behaviour prevention program in youth and young people in South Africa. Overwhelming evidence exists that adolescents engage in risky health behaviour which may potentially negatively impact their lives. This study provides an opportunity to address a gap in the current strategy by developing a prevention program for young people which could later be supported by further booster programs through their adolescents. This project would serve as a baseline prevention program that could assist in the reduction of risky health behaviour among various communities.

Health risk behaviour among adolescent students in higher secondary school of Kathmandu metropolitan city, Nepal

Background: Health-risk behaviours are those activities that contribute to the leading causes of mortality, morbidity, disability, and social problems among youth and adults, often are established during childhood and adolescence, extend into adulthood, and are interrelated. The objective of the study was to assess health risk behaviours and their influencing factors among adolescent students in higher secondary school of Kathmandu metropolitan city.Methods: The study was a school based cross-sectional quantitative type. The study was conducted in three government schools of Kathmandu metropolitan city, Nepal. The purposive sampling technique was applied to select total 250 respondents from grade 11 and 12. The self-administered questionnaire was used for the data collection.Results: Study shows that majority of respondents were between aged 17-20 years, 62.4% were female and 76.8% from Hindu religion. Out of the total respondents, 6.4% smoked cigarettes, 18.4% drank alcohol and 6.8% used drugs. Regarding Initiation risk behaviour, 25% first smoked, 32.6% first drank alcohol and 11.76% first used drug at age <14 years (pre-adolescence). The major influencing factor for involving health risk behaviours are peer pressure (70.58%) followed by their curiosity (29.42). Likewise, this study revealed highly association between risk behaviours of respondents and peer pressure.Conclusions: Despite the widespread of knowledge about negative effect of health risk behaviours, the prevalence is of smoking, drinking alcohol and drug use is higher. There is urge need of initiation and activities regarding health risk behaviour targeting to preadolescents and adolescents’ students.

Covid-19 Pandemic and Its Influence on Social Health Risk Behaviour Change Among Motorcycle Riders in the Transport Industry in Kimili Subcounty, Bungoma County, Kenya

Most urban centres and cities globally are vulnerable to the fast spread of Covid-19 due to their high population and many interactive activities including movement of people. The transport industry has been targeted in many parts of the world in the effort to curb the spread of pandemic as it is believed to be the main conduit of the spread of the pandemic. However, the lockdown of major cities all over the world has led to the development of under ways to facilitate illegal movement of people in and out of the lockdown epicentre cities. In Kenya for instance Nairobi and Mombasa which are believed to be the main epicentres of the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic were put under lockdown by the government of Kenya for three months. Consequently, the government through the ministry of health banned motorists especially public transport vehicles from entering and leaving the epicentre cities. During the lockdown motorcycle became the major mode of public transport illegally sneaking people in and out of these cities thus endangering lives of many Kenyans as they aided in the spread of the pandemic. The lifting of the lockdown of Mombasa and Nairobi has seen tremendous rise in infections and even deaths doubling the previous statistics. The objective of this study was therefore to investigate Covid-19 pandemic and its influence on the social risk behaviour change among motorcycle riders in the transport industry in Kimilili Sub county Bungoma County Kenya. The study population were all the motorcycle riders within Kimilili town. The sample size comprised of 60 motor bike riders selected through simple random sampling from 12 motorcycle stage points in Kimilili town. The study adopted quantitative research design where descriptive survey was employed. Simple structured questionnaire was developed and administered to the respondents. Data was collected and analyzed through descriptive statistics and presented in tables of frequencies and percentages. The results revealed that motorbike riders had failed to comply with the ministry of health guidelines in the transport industry to help fight the spread of Covid-19 pandemic. The extent to which the respondents complied with the government regulations was generally low. Therefore, the noncompliance behaviour of bike motorists to the government directives was a serious social health risk behaviour that the ministry of health should address to minimise the spread of Covid-19 through motorbike transport system in Kenya.

Prevalence and associated factors of oral and hand hygiene behaviour among adolescents in six Southeast Asian countries

ObjectivesRegular tooth brushing, at least twice a day, is effective for the control and prevention of dental caries and periodontal disease, and regular hand washing with soap can effective prevent infections. The study aimed to assess the prevalence, associated factors of oral, hand hygiene behaviour, and associated factors among adolescents in six Southeast Asian countries.MethodsThe sample consisted of 36,173 adolescent school children (median age 14 years), from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, Thailand, and Timor-Leste that participated in the cross-sectional “Global School-based Student Health Survey” (GSHS) in 2014–2015.ResultsResults indicated that 17.1% of students reported <twice a day tooth brushing and sub-optimal (not always) hand washing behaviour (44.8% before meals, 31.9% after toilet use, and 55.8% with soap). In adjusted logistic regression analysis, male sex, health risk behaviour (<daily fruit and <daily vegetable consumption, sedentary behaviour), psychological distress, and lack of peer and parental or guardian support were associated with sub-optimal oral hygiene, and male sex, health risk behaviour (tobacco use, < daily fruit, <daily vegetable consumption, sedentary behaviour, physical inactivity), psychological distress and lack of peer and parental support were associated with sub-optimal hand washing hygiene behaviour.ConclusionsPoor oral and hand hygiene behaviour was identified. Several factors associated with poor hygiene behaviour were identified that can help in designing programmes for promotion of adequate oral and hand hygiene practices.

Health risk behaviour is associated with psychological distress among school-going adolescents in five association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries

ObjectivesThis investigation aimed to study associations between multiple health risk behaviour and psychological distress among in-school adolescents in five association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.MethodsCross-sectional data from the 2015 “Global School-based Health Survey (GSHS)” included 33,184 students (mean age 14.3 years, standard deviation (SD) = 1.6 years) that were representative of all students in middle school students in Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, Thailand and Timor-Leste.ResultsThe mean prevalence of health risk behaviours was 3.1 (SD = 1.2) (range 0–8), and the prevalence of single psychological distress was 14.6% and multiple psychological distress 8.6%. In adjusted multinomial logistic regression analysis, engaging in a greater number of health risk behaviours, being female, older age, food insecurity (experience of hunger) were positively and parental or guardian support and school attendance were negatively associated with both single and multiple psychological distress.ConclusionsThis study confirms that the co-occurrence of multiple health risk behaviours is associated with psychological distress among adolescents, which should be considered when designing intervention programmes in this population.

Rethinking adolescent risk-taking: Perception of social risk impacts expected involvement in health-risk behaviour during adolescence

During adolescence the prevalence of certain health risk behaviours, such as binge drinking and illicit substance use, increases. Engagement in these behaviours has been attributed to immature self-regulation, heightened sensation seeking, and peer influence during adolescence. However, more recently, adolescence has been characterised as a time of risk sensitivity rather than universal increases in health-risk behaviour. For example, the extent to which individuals engage in health-risk behaviours may relate to their sensitivity to the social risk involved in engaging in the health-risk behaviour. In the present study we examined how individual differences in social risk perception relate to an individual’s expectation of future involvement in risky behaviour during adolescence. One hundred and twenty-two participants (ages 11-17, mean 14 years) reported their expected involvement in a number of risk behaviours and degree to which they thought a) engaging in these behaviours would make people like them more, and b) not engaging in these behaviours would make people like them less. Social risk perception was operationalised as the perceived social benefit gained from engaging in a risk behaviour, from low (people would like you less), to high (people would like you more). We used linear mixed effects modelling to assess the contribution of social risk perception in predicting individuals expected involvement in health risk behaviours. We found that adolescents who perceived the social benefit associated with engaging in a risk behaviour to be high were more likely to report higher expected involvement in said behaviour. This was true for illicit substance use, aggressive and illegal behaviours, and risky drinking, but not for risky sex. Adolescents who reported a higher degree of peer victimisation showed a stronger relationship between the perceived social benefit of engaging in, and expected involvement in, these risk behaviours. Further, perceived social benefit moderated the relationship between sensation seeking and expected involvement in risky behaviours. Taken together, these data suggest that, across a number of health risking behaviours, adolescents incorporate perceptions of social risk when making decisions regarding their expected involvement. We argue that future investigations of adolescent health risking behaviours should incorporate social risk.