Factors Associated with Self-Perceived Health among Women Attending a Sports Fitness Centre
Cinthia R. Monteiro, Greice M. S. Mansini, Denise C. Cyrillo

Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate the demographic, socioeconomic, life style and health status factors associated with self-perceived health (SPH) among Brazilian women attending a health fitness centre. The exploratory cross-sectional study involved 162 participants each of whom answered a questionnaire and underwent anthropometric evaluation. The mean age of the participants was 31.46 ? 12.41 years and the average educational level was 13.77 ? 2.68 years of schooling. Most of the women were young (44.4%), physically active (69.8%), eutrophic (58.6%) with good bowel function (58.6%), and good SPH. The dietary habits of 67.4% of the participants required improvement. Body mass index (BMI) and physical activity were the only factors associated significantly with SPH (P<0.001 and P=0.050, respectively). Eutrophic and physically active women exhibited higher probabilities (92.7 and 90.1%, respectively) of presenting good SPH. Since women who have normal BMI and practice exercises are more optimistic in relation to their health status, it is important to implement programs that stimulate healthy life style.

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