Demographic Factors as a Determinant of Health status of Female Undergraduates of University of Ilorin, Nigeria.

Abstract

This study examined the demographic factors as a determinant of health status of female undergraduates of
University of Ilorin. The objectives of the study were to investigate whether parents': socio-economic status,
educational background, cultural background and religious background determine the health status of female
undergraduates of University of Ilorin. Descriptive research design of survey type was adopted for this study
with multi-stage sampling techniques which consisting of simple random, stratified, proportional and
systematic sampling technique were used to select 200 respondents. Researcher's self-structured
questionnaire was used and Test-re-test to establish the reliability of the study. Data collected were analyzed
using both descriptive and inferential statistics of frequency counts, percentages and Chi-square for the
hypotheses at 0.05 alpha level using SPSS software version 20.0. The findings of the study showed that
parents' socio-economic status, educational background, cultural background and religious background were
determinant factors of health status of female undergraduates of University of Ilorin. It is recommended that
greater awareness to improve lifestyle practices, reduce risk behaviours and protect the environment
contributes to an improved health status of the community should be carried out by the government. The
government should also invest in strategic thinking, planning and programming to address the determinants of
health in the long term and the risk reduction objectives contributing to reduction of the burden of diseases and
mortality in the short and intermediate terms especially among female students.