A Comparative Study of Saudi Students' Self-Practice Habits and Oral Health

Oral diseases tend to be linked to specific behaviors of an individual. That is why specific infectious disease prevalence had declined when personal hygiene was improved. Oral and hand hygiene are examples of activities which have been noted to impact the health of individuals (Cruz & Bashtawi, 2015). This research will analyze the nature of self-practice among Saudi students in the U.S. and how it affects their overall health.

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The prevalence of tooth decay in children aged 12-14 years was quite high, at 93.7%, among Saudi students (Al Subait et al., 2016). When compared to male students, female students had a better understanding of oral hygiene, which is why more of them brushed their teeth frequently as needed (Al Subait et al., 2016). Therefore, there is a difference in how males and females approach hygiene (Cruz et al., 2015).

Self-practice may also relate to how an individual cares for the skin in response to the UV rays. Most skin diseases are caused by exposure to the UV radiation, which damages the cells and impacts its growth (Al Ghamdi et al., 2015). Without the right knowledge on what products to use and the right attitude towards the associated risk, individuals will not be motivated to take protective measures.

Among the Saudi students living in the U.S., little is known regarding their level of awareness and behaviors that relate to exposure to the sun and protection against the UV rays (Al Ghamdi et al., 2015). Hand Hygiene is yet also a focus for many researchers. It is also impacted by the level of knowledge held by Saudi students in the US (Hamadah et al., 2015).

Also, students need to understand the importance of personal hygiene when caring for patients as it will prevent the transmission of infections (Alsager et al., 2018). Therefore, it has already been established that self-care relates to having sufficient knowledge and better attitudes towards hygiene. Unfortunately, there is a gap in the literature concerning the steps that have been taken to improve these factors among Saudi students in the U.S.

References

Al Ghamdi, K., M., Al Aklabi, A., S., & Al Qahtani, A., Z. (2015). Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the general public toward sun exposure and protection: A national survey in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Pharmaceutical Journal. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsps.2015.04.002

Al Subait, A., et al. (2016). Knowledge, attitude, and practices related to oral health among -university students in Saudi Arabia; A cross-sectional study. The Saudi Journal for Dental Research. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sjdr.2016.06.003

Alsager, N., Abdali, S., & Moawad, S. (2018). Assess knowledge and practice of preparatory student about personal hygiene in Riyadh City. American Journal of Nursing Science. 7(6), 231-238. doi: 10.11648/j.ajns.20180706.16

Cruz, J., & Bashtawi, M. (2015). Predictors of hand hygiene practice among Saudi nursing students: A cross-sectional self-reported study. Journal of Infection and Public Health. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jiph.2015.11.010 187

Cruz, J., Cruz, C., & Al-Otaibi, A. (2015). Gender differences in hand hygiene among Saudi nursing students. International Journal of Infection Control. 11(4). doi: https://doi.org/10.3396/ijic.v11i4.14123

Hamadah, R., Kharraz, R., Alshanqity, A., et al. (2015). Hand hygiene: Knowledge and attitudes of fourth-year clerkship medical students at Alfaisal University, College of Medicine, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Cureus, 7(8): e310. Doi: 10.7759/cureus.310