Representations of Muscovites of working age about a healthy lifestyle and observance of its principles

Introduction. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle (HLS) is one of the key aspects of the prevention of a number of chronic infectious diseases (CID). The increase in the number of people keeping a healthy lifestyle is a predictor not only of the sanitary, but also of the socio-economic well-being of society.

The purpose of the study is to determine the views of Muscovites of working age about HLS and compliance with its principles.

Materials and methods. The article uses the results of a sociological survey of the able-bodied population of Moscow (18–55 years women and 18–60 years men) conducted in 2022. A total of one thousand five hundred twenty two respondents took part in the survey. The maximum sampling error is ± 2.51% (CI = 95%). To obtain additional data, 12 focus group discussions were also conducted with capital residents of working age, both having and not keeping HLS.

Results. 63% of the respondents noted that they certainly or rather keep HLS, 71% of them assess their state of health as good. Different HLS practices are considered, the adherence to which is rather uniform. The study describes self-preserving and acquiescent models of attitude to one’s own health, factors of motivation to HLS, as well as images of people who do and do not follow HLS. These images can have positive and negative aspects in different population groups. Various socio-economic, infrastructural and personal barriers can hinder the gain in the number of Muscovites who lead a healthy lifestyle, and a number of approaches to work with them are proposed in this paper.

Research limitations. The study is limited to residents of the city of Moscow, which may impose restrictions on the generalization of data.

Conclusion. An increase in the share of Muscovites who keep HLS is possible by creating the most attractive conditions for conducting a healthy lifestyle in all spheres of human life at the level of the general urban environment, the level of habitat and work.

Compliance with ethical standards. The study was approved by the Ethical Committee for Expert Review of Research in Public Health, Organization and Sociology of Health Care at the Research Institute for Healthcare Organization and Medical Management of Moscow Healthcare Department (Minutes of 13.09.2022 No. 09-01/3102022).

Contribution of the authors:
Bogdan I.V. — general management of the research, writing the text of the article, editing;
Gornostalev M.D. — development of research methodology, conducting focus group discussions, writing the text of the article, literature review;
Chistyakova D.P. — development of research methodology, processing quantitative data, editing.
All authors — are responsible for the integrity of all parts of the manuscript and approval of the manuscript final version.

Acknowledgment. The study had no sponsorship.

Conflict of interest. The authors declare the absence of obvious and potential conflicts of interest in connection with the publication of this article.

Received: May 29, 2024 / Accepted: October 3, 2024 / Published: November 6, 2024