PREVALENCE OF HEALTH COMPROMISING BEHAVIORS AMONG TERTIARY EDUCATION STUDENTS IN THE ENUGU STATE OF NIGERIA

Health compromising behaviors are detrimental behaviors that have been implicated in increased mortality and morbidity in every society. Although peculiar to all ages, gender, economic and social status. There is a growing indication that risky health behavior is more prevalent in adolescents. Notably, there is no known recent data on health-compromising behavior among adolescents in Enugu state. Thus, the current study examined the prevalence of risky behaviors among tertiary education students in Enugu state. Four hundred and eighty-nine undergraduates pooled from tertiary institutions participated in the study. The participants completed a self-report measure assessing their health-compromising behavior. The result showed physical inactivity 53.7% represented the highest rate of risky behavior identified among the students, followed by alcoholic use with an overall rate of 51.9%. Also, smoking 48.6% and self-medication 43.7% assumed an elevated rate of health risk behavior among the cohort, while unsafe sexual behavior rated 21.4%, and fighting 17% were rated the least prevalent health risky behavior among the students.