Lifestyle Behaviours, Dietary Habits, and Health Awareness Among Residential Undergraduate Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction Medical students are expected to possess sound knowledge of healthy lifestyle practices; however, demanding academic schedules, irregular routines, and hostel-based living may negatively influence their dietary habits, sleep patterns, physical activity, and overall health behaviours. This can lead to a discrepancy between health awareness and actual practices, making this group particularly relevant for lifestyle-related research. Aim This study aimed to evaluate lifestyle behaviours, dietary habits, and health awareness among residential undergraduate medical students. Objectives The following are the objectives of this study: to assess dietary habits and breakfast-related behaviours, to evaluate sleep patterns and screen time behaviour, to assess levels of physical activity, to examine awareness regarding food ingredients and nutrition labelling, and to identify the gap between health awareness and actual lifestyle practices. Methods A quantitative, cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted at Shri B. M. Patil Medical College, Hospital and Research Centre, BLDE (Deemed to be University), Vijayapura, Karnataka, India. A total of 199 residential undergraduate medical students aged 18-25 years from all academic phases participated. Data were acquired using a structured, self-administered questionnaire developed by the authors and validated using the Content Validity Index (CVI) methodology, assessing dietary habits, sleep patterns and screen time behaviour, physical activity, and awareness of food ingredients and nutrition labels. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics. Categorical variables were summarised as frequency and percentage (n (%)). No inferential statistical tests were performed. Results A total of 130 (65.3%) students reported sometimes or often skipping breakfast, while 21 (10.6%) reported always skipping breakfast. A total of 91 (45.7%) students reported sleeping less than six hours per night, and 188 (94.5%) used digital devices before bedtime. Although 139 (69.8%) students reported engaging in physical activity, only 50 (25.1%) exercised daily. Regular reading of nutrition labels was reported by 77 (38.7%) students. Health awareness was higher than consistent healthy practices across all domains. Conclusion Residential medical students demonstrated moderate to high health awareness and poor adherence to healthy lifestyle behaviours, indicating an ongoing knowledge-practice gap and the need for institution-based interventions.