Sapporo Medical Journal

Abstract : Aim: In this study, we aim to measure the prevalence of using activity trackers in students at health colleges in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and to compare the physical activity between the students who are wearing such these devices. Method: We performed a cross-sectional study among students who are enrolled in the academic year 2016–2020. We included all health college students. Arab Teens Lifestyle Study questionnaire (ATLS) was used to assess the self-reported physical activity. Results: In total, 258 students with a mean age of 23.36± 1.77 were included; 131 (50.8 %) of them were male. Majority of students (172, 66.7 %) were studying medicine, and more than half of them (52.3 %) are on their 6th year. As per our findings, 44.2 % of the total participants do not engage in physical activity. The percentage of using fitness tracker was 32.6 %; moreover, only 33 (51.5 %) students reportedly use it for 24 hours. The average number of steps, distance, and time per day was 5621.6 ± 3623.72, 8.93 ± 15.99, and 6.59 ± 9.82, respectively. According to gender, there was a significant difference in average time (hour) per day, showing higher time per day for female than male (8.97 ± 11.81 vs. 4.46 ± 6.97, p = 0.019). Conclusions: Our result showed that a third of the participants were using fitness trackers from both genders, and females were doing longer physical activity than males. Students’ awareness on the importance of engaging in physical activity should be further promoted.