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Background: Lifestyle choices significantly affect health outcomes in Saudi Arabia, but the relationship between health behaviors and satisfaction is unclear. This study aimed to assess lifestyle choices and associated satisfaction levels among residents in the Jazan region of Saudi Arabia., Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Jazan, Saudi Arabia, with 3411 participants. Sociodemographic, lifestyle, and satisfaction data were collected using a questionnaire that was completed during interviews. Logistic regression analyses were implemented to examine the relationships between the study variables and factors related to weight, physical activity, and eating satisfaction., Results: The study found that 38.3% of participants were inactive and 77% rarely ate fruits and vegetables. A total of 47.6% were overweight or obese. Weight (71.12%) and eating (71.59%) satisfaction were high despite these health concerns. The satisfaction-behavior paradox was especially evident in diet. Higher income, physical activity, and healthy eating habits were significantly associated with higher satisfaction (OR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.15-1.93, p = 0.003 for weight satisfaction, OR = 34.74, 95% CI: 25.42-48.35, p < 0.001 for physical activity satisfaction, and OR = 2.08, 95% CI: 1.67-2.61, p < 0.001 for fruit and vegetable consumption)., Conclusions: Lifestyle behaviors and satisfaction in Jazan, Saudi Arabia, are complex. The satisfaction-behavior paradox, especially in diet, reveals a major gap between perceived and actual health. These findings highlight the need for targeted, culturally sensitive interventions that address behavioral change and perception alignment to improve regional public health.

The purpose of this study was to undertake a randomized control trial examining the effects of a 12-week home-based physical activity program on Saudi Arabian adults with type 2 diabetes. Sixty-four patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus were recruited from the Jazan Diabetes and Endocrinology Center, located in the Jazan region of southwestern Saudi Arabia. Patients were randomly assigned to either control, i.e., usual care (males = 46.9% and females = 53.1%, age  =  45.88 ± 8.51 years, mass  =  76.30 ± 15.16 kg, stature  =  160.59 ± 8.94 cm, body mass index (BMI)  =  29.73 ± 6.24 kg/m 2 , years since diagnosis  =  8.12 ± 6.22 years) or a home-based physical activity (males = 50% and females = 50%, age  =  42.07 ± 9.72 years, mass  =  74.58 ± 13.67 kg, stature  =  158.94 ± 9.38 cm, BMI  =  29.44 ± 4.38 kg/m 2 , years since diagnosis  =  12.17 ± 8.38 years) trial arms. The home-based physical activity group was required to undertake aerobic training by increasing their habitual step count by 2000 steps per day and performing resistance training 3 times per week for 12 weeks. The primary outcome was hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), and secondary measures of anthropometrics, blood biomarkers, physical fitness, and patient-reported quality of life outcomes pertinent to type 2 diabetes were measured at timepoints, i.e., baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks (follow-up). Intention-to-treat analyses revealed no significant alterations in the primary outcome (control: baseline = 8.71%, 12-weeks = 8.35%, and follow-up = 8.72%; home-based physical activity: baseline = 8.32%, 12-weeks = 8.06%, and follow-up = 8.39%) between trial arms. However, improvements in psychological wellbeing at follow-up measured using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 were significantly greater in the home-based physical activity group (baseline = 6.84, 12-weeks = 5.96, and follow-up = 5.00) compared to the control (baseline = 6.81, 12-weeks = 5.73, and follow-up = 8.53). No other statistically significant observations were observed. Home-based physical activity is not effective in mediating improvements in HbA1c levels or secondary hematological, blood pressure, anthropometric, or fitness indices. However, given the link between psychological wellbeing and the etiology/progression of disease activity in type 2 diabetes, home-based physical activity may be effective for tertiary disease management. Future trials should examine the efficacy of relative exercise intensities greater than those in the current study.

Background: Hypertension (HTN) is a major global public health problem. Knowledge of the risk factors and repercussions of HTN is crucial to preventing the disease. Rural populations have lower levels of knowledge of the disease than urban populations. However, no studies have assessed the levels of awareness of HTN and their determinants in rural regions of Saudi Arabia., Objectives: This study aimed to assess the awareness of HTN and its determinants among a rural population of Jazan region, Saudi Arabia., Methodology: We conducted a cross-sectional analytical study among six primary healthcare centers selected randomly from the rural areas of Jazan region. We targeted all Saudi adults visiting these centers. Information was gathered using interview questionnaires completed by 607 people. SPSS was utilized to analyze the collected data., Results: In all population groups, the prevalence of diagnosed HTN increased with age, particularly gradually increasing in those aged younger than 40 years and then rapidly and sharply increasing in those aged 40 years and over. The women (43.3%) had a higher prevalence of HTN than the men (34.6%), which is comparable with findings in other areas in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. Approximately 65.6% of the participants without HTN and 34.4% of the participants with HTN did not know their normal blood pressure. Approximately 61.7% of the participants without HTN and 59.0% of the participants with HTN felt that pharmaceuticals are insufficient in curing HTN, while 60.7% and 64.7% believed that HTN can be cured., Conclusions: The global prevalence of HTN is increasing annually owing to rapid changes in lifestyle and dietary habits. Furthermore, because adherence to antihypertensives is poor in rural Jazan, the Ministry of Health and researchers advocate implementing a program to increase awareness and assess patient adherence to prescribed medication for the control of HTN.

Increasing evidence suggests that physical activity (PA) can reduce depression and anxiety in adolescents. At the same time, quality of life (QoL) is sensitive to both mental health and PA, but little is known about the mechanism between these three variables among adolescents. This study aimed to assess the physical activity, mental health, and quality of life of school students when they returned to school after two years of distance learning in the Jazan region. This current investigation represented an observational cross-sectional survey conducted in January 2022 among a random sample of 601 students from intermediate and high schools in the Jazan region, Saudi Arabia. Three standardized questionnaires were used for data collection; the Arabic version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS21), and the Fels PAQ for children. The analysis revealed a moderate level of physical activity, decreased HRQoL, and symptoms of mental health problems (anxiety, depression, and stress) among the schools' students when they returned to school following COVID-19 lockdown. The overall Pediatric Quality of Life mean score was (81.4 ± 16.4), which differed significantly according to gender, age groups, and grade levels ( p < 0.05 for all). There was a negative correlation between the overall quality of life and mental health domains. Sport was negatively correlated with mental illness symptoms and positively correlated ( p < 0.05) with Pediatric Quality of Life. The regression models revealed that stress was a significant predictor for the quality of life of male and female adolescents ([β = -0.30, (95% CI (-0.59) to (-0.02), p < 0.05)] and [β = -0.40, (95% CI (-0.70) to (-0.01), p < 0.05)], respectively). The analysis revealed a moderate level of physical activity among the schools' students when they returned to school following COVID-19 lockdown. Children's involvement in physical activity was associated with improved quality of life and mental health. The results call for the need to develop appropriate intervention programs to increase school students' physical activity levels.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a serious public health problem in many Middle Eastern countries. Mothers with PPD experience various extreme symptoms that affect their daily lives. This study aims to discover how common PPD is in the Jazan region, the most significant risk factors, and how likely depressed women are to seek help. An observational cross-sectional survey targeting a sample of 444 mothers in their first year after delivery using a pre-tested and validated EDPS standard tool to evaluate the prevalence of postpartum depression amongst them has been conducted. The data was collected and then analyzed using SPSS. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the risk factors associated with PPD. The results indicate an extremely high prevalence of PPD in Jazan (75.7%). The prevalence of mothers having suicidal ideation was 6.3% quite often, 5.0% sometimes, and 7.9% hardly. Regarding the duration of depression symptoms, 34.78% were less than a month, 20.72% were less than six months, and 13.06% were less than one year. The study shows that the development of depression symptoms occurred within less than a week for 30.4% of the women. The most significant association with PPD was a lack of family support, which significantly increased the risk of PPD (OR = 5.9; p -value < 0.001). The mothers who had unexpected pregnancies had a risk of PPD (OR = 2.5; p -value < 0.001). Current research has revealed a high prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers in the Jazan region and that it is associated with different risk factors that increase the probability of PPD development. Pregnant women need to raise their awareness about PPD and learn how to avoid or deal with it.

Background : Admission to medical school is competitive, and different countries use various tests in addition to high school grades to minimize selection bias. A few studies have been conducted to evaluate the usefulness of these tests as predictors for students' academic performance. In this article, we aimed to assess factors that influenced students' grades in medical school. Methods : A cross-sectional study included all students who graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at Jazan University between 2018 and 2020. Scores of the included participants were extracted from the registry of Jazan University, and additional questions about study habits were completed by the included students. Descriptive, univariate, and multivariate analyses were performed for the factors that impacted academic performance. Results : There were 331 included candidates, and the majority of them were female (53%). About 60% of the participants were medical residents at the time of the study, and 40% were interns. Univariate and multivariate analyses indicated that grades in high school and the pre-requisite tests were positively associated with students' academic performance. Further, studying more than two hours per day was positively correlated with better grades in medical school. Conclusion : Scores of the admission tests can serve as predictors for student performance in medical school. National studies are deemed essential to evaluate additional admission tests for medical school, an action that would minimize selection bias.

Vaccination has a major role in the control of the COVID-19 pandemic. The behavior toward accepting the COVID-19 vaccine is complex and multifactorial, while the level of acceptance and hesitancy depends on many factors. This study aims to measure the level of vaccine acceptance among Jazan University students and identify its predictors. In this cross-sectional study, an online questionnaire based on the health belief model (HBM) was sent through social media "WhatsApp" to two strata of students selected by convenient sampling. The overall desire to get vaccinated was noted in 83.6% of participants, and 16.4% reported no desire to be vaccinated. The constructs of the HBM were shown to significantly predict vaccine acceptance with the exception of "perceived susceptibility". In conclusion, the level of acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine among Jazan University students was relatively high. The HBM constructs are important predictors of the vaccination behavior with the exception of the construct "perceived susceptibility".