eHealth Literacy and Lifestyle Behaviours among Undergraduate Students in Nigeria: A Cross-sectional Study

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacy Management, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Enugu State, Nigeria

2 School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom

Abstract

Background and Objective: Lifestyle choices influence health and wellbeing, and accessing health information online requires skills to use effectively. This study aimed to assess eHealth literacy and its association with lifestyle behaviours among undergraduate students in Nigeria.

Materials and Methods: We employed a cross-sectional study design using questionnaires to gather responses from undergraduate students across 15 faculties at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The calculated sample size was 630 participants, but to account for a 50% potential loss, 1250 students across all levels were selected for the study. A random sampling technique was used to select six faculties: three health-related and three non-health-related. A structured demographic questionnaire was used to record sociodemographic information, lifestyle behaviours, internet access, and use; the e-health literacy scale (eHEALS) was used to record e-Health literacy. The data was analysed using IBM SPSS version 25.0. Descriptive (mean, frequency, percentage) and inferential statistics (Chi square) were employed, where appropriate, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05.

Results: Out of the 1250 students that participated in the study, 1233 (98.7%) had internet access, while 791 (63.5%) used the internet to assess health information regularly. A total of 648 (51.8%) and 573 (45.9%) students, respectively, exercised regularly and slept regularly. A total of 913 (73%) participants ate regular breakfast. Most of the students did not consume alcohol regularly (91.9%) and were non-smokers (95.9%). The mean eHEALS score was 27.77/40 points. Students in health-related courses had better eHealth literacy than others (p<0.05); a higher level of study led to higher eHealth literacy (p<0.01); and those who exercised once a week or more had better eHealth literacy (p<0.01).

Conclusion: Study participants demonstrated good eHealth literacy, associated with course, level of study, exercise, and sleep patterns. Future nationwide studies on the impact of eHealth literacy education are needed to prove causation and develop an intervention.

Keywords

Acknowledgements: The authors thank all the students at the university who participated in the study and the various course representatives who assisted with the recruiting of study participants.


Availability of data and materials: The datasets generated and/or analysed during this study are not publicly available to protect confidentiality, but aggregated data is available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.


Conflicts of interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.


Consent for publication: Not applicable


Ethical approval and consent to participate: The study obtained full ethical approval from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Science ethical review board. Ref No: FPSRE/UNN/21/0011 (Aug 15, 2021). No identifier information was requested from the respondents. All information obtained from the respondents was treated with the utmost confidentiality. Before each participant signed the written informed consent, we made sure they read it, understood its contents, and decided they wanted to take part in the study. We confirm that all procedures followed the guidance outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki.


Funding: This study did not receive any form of funding from any agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.


Author contributions: NUI, OJU and BOU-K devised the study and developed/refined the main conceptual ideas. NUI and BOU-K led the study protocol development, ethical application and gaining approvals. All authors undertook recruitment and data collection. OJU undertook the main analysis with critical input from NUI and BOU-K. OJU and BOU-K drafted the manuscript. All authors helped refine the manuscript and approved the final version.

 

Open Access Policy: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

References

1. Bujnowska-Fedak MM. Trends in the use of the Internet for health purposes in Poland. BMC public health. 2015;15(1):1-17.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-015-1473-3
PMid:25886280 PMCid:PMC4349300  
2. James DC, Cedric Harville I. Peer reviewed: eHealth literacy, online help-seeking behavior, and willingness to participate in mHealth chronic disease research among African Americans, Florida, 2014-2015. Preventing chronic disease. 2016;13.
https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd13.160210
PMid:27854421 PMCid:PMC5127175  
3. Laugesen J, Hassanein K, Yuan Y. The impact of internet health information on patient compliance: a research model and an empirical study. Journal of medical Internet research. 2015;17(6):e143.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.4333
PMid:26068214 PMCid:PMC4526934  
4. Shiferaw KB, Mehari EA. Modeling predictors of acceptance and use of electronic medical record system in a resource limited setting: Using modified UTAUT model. Informatics in Medicine Unlocked. 2019;17:1-9.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.imu.2019.100182  
5. Aardoom JJ, Dingemans AE, Spinhoven P, Roijen LH-v, Van Furth EF. An Internet-based intervention for eating disorders consisting of automated computer-tailored feedback with or without supplemented frequent or infrequent support from a coach: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2013;14:1-10.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1745-6215-14-340
PMid:24135131 PMCid:PMC3853403  
6. DataReportal. Global digital insights https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2022-nigeria 2022. Assessed on July 23, 2023.  
7. Berkman ND, Sheridan SL, Donahue KE, Halpern DJ, Crotty K. Low health literacy and health outcomes: an updated systematic review. Annals of internal medicine. 2011;155(2):97-107.
https://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-155-2-201107190-00005
PMid:21768583  
8. Rouvinen H, Jokiniemi K, Sormunen M, Turunen H. Internet use and health in higher education students: a scoping review. Health Promotion International. 2021;36(6):1610-20
https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/daab007
PMid:33738490 PMCid:PMC8699394  
9. Kington RS, Arnesen S, Chou W-YS, Curry SJ, Lazer D, Villarruel AM. Identifying credible sources of health information in social media: Principles and attributes. NAM perspectives. 2021;7(1)1-37.
https://doi.org/10.31478/202107a
PMid:34611600 PMCid:PMC8486420  
10. Norman CD, Skinner HA. eHealth literacy: essential skills for consumer health in a networked world. Journal of medical Internet research. 2006;8(2):e506.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.8.2.e9
PMid:16867972 PMCid:PMC1550701  
11. Tonsaker T, Bartlett G, Trpkov C. Health information on the Internet: gold mine or minefield? Canadian Family Physician. 2014;60(5):407-8.  
12. Yang S-C, Luo Y-F, Chiang C-H. The associations among individual factors, eHealth literacy, and health-promoting lifestyles among college students. Journal of medical Internet research. 2017;19(1):e15.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.5964
PMid:28073739 PMCid:PMC5263862  
13. Vozikis A, Drivas K, Milioris K. Health literacy among university students in Greece: determinants and association with self-perceived health, health behaviours and health risks. Archives of Public Health. 2014;72(1):1-6.
https://doi.org/10.1186/2049-3258-72-15
PMid:24987522 PMCid:PMC4066308  
14. Britt RK, Collins WB, Wilson K, Linnemeier G, Englebert AM. eHealth literacy and health behaviors affecting modern college students: a pilot study of issues identified by the American College Health Association. Journal of medical Internet research. 2017;19(12):e392.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.3100
PMid:29258979 PMCid:PMC5750421  
16. Norman CD, Skinner HA. eHEALS: the eHealth literacy scale. Journal of medical Internet research. 2006;8(4):e507.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.8.4.e27
PMid:17213046 PMCid:PMC1794004  
17. Islama MM, Touraya M, Yangb H-C, Polyc TN, Nguyenb P-A, Lia Y-CJ, et al. E-Health Literacy and Health Information Seeking Behavior Among University Students in Bangladesh. 2017;245:122-125.  
18. Mengestie ND, Yilma TM, Beshir MA, Paulos GK. eHealth literacy of medical and health science students and factors affecting eHealth literacy in an Ethiopian university: a cross-sectional study. Applied Clinical Informatics. 2021;12(02):301-9.
https://doi.org/10.1055/s-0041-1727154
PMid:33827143 PMCid:PMC8026260  
19. Blebil AQ, Dujaili JA, Mohammed AH, Loh LL, Chung WX, Selvam T, et al. Exploring the eHealth literacy and mobile health application utilisation amongst Malaysian pharmacy students. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare. 2023;29(1):58-71.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1357633X221077869
PMid:35188826  
20. Kühn L, Bachert P, Hildebrand C, Kunkel J, Reitermayer J, Wäsche H, et al. Health literacy among university students: a systematic review of cross-sectional studies. Frontiers in public health. 2022;9:21-32.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.680999
PMid:35127605 PMCid:PMC8814326  
21. Sögüt S, Cangöl E, İlknur D. The Relationship Between eHealth Literacy and Self-Efficacy Levels in Midwifery Students Receiving Distance Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic. The Journal of Nursing Research. 2022;30(2):e203.
https://doi.org/10.1097/jnr.0000000000000474
PMid:35234210 PMCid:PMC8945393  
Journal of Health Literacy

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 30 April 2024

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics