Alcohol consumption and perceived body image in nursing students from two areas of Mexico

Abstract

This article aims to compare alcohol consumption and perceived body image in nursing students from two areas of Mexico. A descriptive, comparative study, AUDIT was applied for alcohol consumption, Stunkard pictogram for perceived body image and BMI measurement, the results were analyzed with descriptive statistics, Chi-square and U Mann Whitney. The sample was 206 nursing students, 54.2% / southwest region and 47.6% northwest region; the overall prevalence of alcohol consumption was 77.1%, excess weight in 52.4%, and image perceived as normal weight in 73.8%, the prevalence of alcohol consumption is higher, BMI in the northwest and image perceived in the southwest. Association of alcohol consumption with perceived image was found (p <.05). A multidisciplinary health intervention is necessary to modify dysfunctional beliefs about your own body and decrease alcohol consumption.