Creencias sobre salud y prácticas de autocuidado en adultos jóvenes: estudio biográfico de estilos de vida

Abstract

The abundant access to information and recommendations for self-care for health through the media and public health programs have not managed to increase the adherence of the population to healthy lifestyles. Despite advances in this area, the non-communicable diseases associated with unhealthy lifestyles continue to be an epidemic worldwide. Objective: the beliefs of Chilean young professionals about health and self-care were studied in depth to understand one of the relevant psychosocial factors that affect health self-care. Materials and methods: through a qualitative study based on the phenomenological paradigm and the biographical method, the life stories of 14 Chilean young professional adults working in different work areas were analyzed. Results: based on a content analysis, young people show favorable beliefs towards a healthy lifestyle but, at the level of self-care practices, they maintain some unhealthy behaviors. This is how, reagardless of the scientific knowledge they handle about health, young people generate a personal argumentative structure that allows them to self-justify the inconsistence between their beliefs and their self-care practices. Conclusions: These findings raise the need to redirect the focus of interventions promoting healthy lifestyles.