Abstract

Background: Evidence-based practice revealed that, health-related behavioral risks and lifestyle factors significantly contributed to certain Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, mellitus cardiovascular illnesses, and some types of cancer.

Objectives: To study the prevalence and profile of health-related behavioral risks factors includes tobacco use, physical activity, obesity & overweight as well as healthy food consumption among a representative sample of Dubai population.

Methodology: Dubai HouseholdHealth Survey was carried out in 2014 as a cross-sectional, multistage, stratified, cluster survey. Houses were visited to obtain detailed information on the different health-related issues. About 4800 families were randomly selected by stratified cluster sampling techniques. With a response rate of 80%, the final sample equals to 13,299 individuals. The design and methodology of the survey were adapted from those used in the World Bank’s Living Standards Measurement Surveys (LSMS) and the World Health Organization’s World Health Surveys (WHS). Data collection was made by 75 well-trained researchers and 25 well-trained nurses.The duration of data collection lasted to 40 working days under strict technical and administrative procedure. Data was collected electronically using well calipered tablets.Data entry, coding, cleaning, weighing and analysis have been carried out using the SPSS program.

Findings: The present study revealed that among the 13,299 respondents, 72.4% were males and 7.9% were Emirati. The study showed that proportion of current smoker was 16.1% (it was 20.1% for males and 2.9% for females).

The survey findings underlined a suboptimal intake of fruits and vegetables in the Dubai population. Overall, 90.4% of the sample reported consuming a fruit 1–3 times a day. At the same context, 90.6% of the survey population took a vegetable 1 to 3 times a day. In concern with the physical activities, an alarming high prevalence of physical inactivity among the sampled population of Dubai was observed (85.1%), with 95.4% of them didn’t perform vigorous intensity activities, other than those done as part of work (considered inactive).In addition, only 18.2% of the survey population did moderate-intensity activities for at least 10 minutes at a time, as part of work(1–3 days per week), and hence considered inactive.

Conclusions: Multiple behavioral risk factors were significantly highlighted among Dubai Population, pointing out physical in-activity at the population level, high consumption of non-healthy food and high levels of tobacco use. This indicates true epidemiological transition which necessitate aggressive multidimensional interventions and policy actions.

Keywords

behavioral, risks, Dubai, population, household health, survey