The Willingness to Change Risky Health Behaviors among Chinese Rural Residents: What We Learned from a Population-Based Esophageal Cancer Cohort Study

PLoS One. 2016 Aug 30;11(8):e0161999. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161999. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Background: The effectiveness of health interventions can be impaired by low socio-economic status and poor living conditions of the target population. However, the specifics of this problem in rural China are still unclear, and appropriate strategies should be explored.

Methods: In 2013, we conducted a questionnaire-based investigation among 410 participants from a population-based esophageal cancer cohort study in rural Anyang, China. Information regarding their demographic characteristics, levels of exposure to four health-risk behaviors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, risky dietary behaviors and poor hygiene, as well as willingness to change these behaviors, and data on potential predictors of willingness to change behaviors were collected.

Results: In this study, 33.3% (23/69), 25.0% (13/52), 60.7% (68/112) and 62.2% (237/381) of respondents reported that they were willing to change smoking, alcohol consumption, risky dietary behaviors and poor hygiene, respectively. Older people had higher exposure levels and less willingness to change these four health-risk behaviors. The levels of these four health-risk behaviors were negatively associated with willingness to change, while faith in people and behavioral change in surrounding people increased willingness to change risky behaviors.

Conclusions: In behavior-intervention-based health-promotion programs in rural China, the elderly and highly exposed populations should be the most difficult part and community- or household-based intervention would be more efficient.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Age Factors
  • China
  • Cohort Studies
  • Esophageal Neoplasms / psychology*
  • Female
  • Health Behavior
  • Health Surveys
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Risk-Taking
  • Rural Population / statistics & numerical data*

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Charity Project of National Ministry of Health [grant number 201202014]; "973" Project of National Ministry of Science and Technology Grant [grant number 2012CB910803]; "863" Key Projects of National Ministry of Science and Technology Grant [grant numbers 2012AA02A209, 2012AA022502]; and Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission [grant number Z141100002114046] to Y. Ke. Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number 81473033] to Z. He. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.