Two-thirds of US adults are overweight and half live with other chronic conditions. Interestingly, as the number of unhealthy adults has increased, so has the number of Smartphone users. Approximately 46% of Americans own a Smartphone. Self-monitoring has been demonstrated to be an effective method to improve health outcomes. One study found that 21% of respondents use technology to track their health data. Further, 19% of Smartphone owners have downloaded an App to manage health such as exercise, diet, and weight management Apps. Little data has examined the use of health-related Apps among college students. The purpose of this study was to examine the use of Smartphones, health-related Apps, perceived levels of fitness and nutrition, and their effects on GPA among college students.
Method:
Participants were 669 undergraduate students who responded to the 22-item Smartphone Use Among College Students survey. The sample was predominantly White (70%), was equally divided between genders (51% female; 49% male) and the majority (62%) were upper classman. One-hundred percent of the subjects had a cell-phone and 97.5% reported having a Smartphone. Participants who did not use Smartphones were disqualified from the study. No course or extra credit was given for participation.
Analysis/Results:
Participants reported using their Smartphone on average 5.69 hours per day (SD=2.83). Health-related Apps were somewhat prevalent among the participants. Forty-three percent reported having a “fitness” App, followed by 28% having “nutrition” and “weight management” Apps, respectively. Overall perceived fitness (M=6.48/10, SD=2.09) and nutrition (M=5.64/10, SD=2.00) levels were relatively high.
GPA was not found to be related to any Smartphone use related variables. For example, hours of use was not significantly related to GPA (r=.007, p=87). Gender differences were found. Females reported significantly more use (M=7.05, SD=3.35) when compared to males (M=4.26, SD=2.19), F(1, 640)=51.09, p=.000. Females reported a greater than expected use of health-related Apps: Fitness, χ2 (1, N=667)=23.79, p=.000; Nutrition, χ2 (1, N=667)=26.69, p=.000; and Weight Management, χ2 (1, N=667)=60.17, p=.000. Lastly, males reported a significantly higher perceived fitness (F(1, 662)=11.84, p=.001) and nutrition levels (F(1, 663)=3.68, p=.050).
Conclusions:
While the findings indicate that Smartphones play a role in the lives of college students, their use did not negatively affect GPA. Conventional wisdom suggests that the use of fitness, nutrition, and weight management Apps will become more prevalent and available. It is incumbent upon health and physical education professionals to continue to support their ease of use for health-tracking purposes.