Analysis of Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour of Students at the University of Zagreb—Importance of the Compulsory Subject: Physical and Health Culture (60th Anniversary of Tradition)
Introduction: According to a study conducted among students in Zagreb, despite sufficient awareness among students of the importance of physical activity (PA) for health, there is an insufficient level of PA in general. The subject of Physical education and health culture among students is the only form of organised PA and physical exercise. At the University of Zagreb 64,669 students are enrolled, of which 1665 students are enrolled at the Faculty of Agriculture and 2541 students at the Faculty of Kinesiology. Both faculties have a certain number of hours for practical exercises in their study programmes. Objective: The aim of this study is to analyse and compare the PA and sedentary behaviour (SB) of students from the Faculty of Kinesiology and the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Zagreb. Method: The Mann-Whitney U test was used to determine the differences between the students of the two faculties in terms of the level of PA and SB, as well as the differences by gender at the level of the error of statistical inference p < 0.05. Results: Almost 40% of agriculture students are insufficiently active (22.15% are not active but are thinking of starting, and 17.18% are students who have only participated in PE). Students in the Faculty of Agriculture spend an average of 3.84 hours per week (SD = 3.63) on sports and recreational activities, while students in the Faculty of Kinesiology spend twice as much time at 9.61 hours (SD = 5.12). Depending on the faculty, the students differed statistically significantly in their SB in terms of study time and time spent on the computer. In terms of gender, differences were found in SB for study time and time spent on the computer, but for entertainment. Conclusion: The academic community is recognised as an appropriate place to educate students about the importance of PA and maintaining personal health. In order to determine recommendations for PA, SB, and the necessary hours of sleep that are optimal for the health of the student population, it is necessary to create a standardised questionnaire and conduct research on a larger sample of students.
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