Physical, mental, emotional and social health status of adolescents and youths in Benghazi, Libya

Adolescence and youth are stages of life that offer great opportunities for reduction of future health needs. A cross-sectional study was carried out to assess the physical, mental, emotional and social health status of adolescents and youths attending 2 large universities in Benghazi city, Libya, and to determine variables associated with their health status. Stratified sampling was used to select 383 students aged 17–24 years and data were collected by face-to-face interview and self-administered questionnaires. Major health problems were depression/anxiety and pain/discomfort, and these were suffered by significantly more females than males. Mental health was at the transitional stage in Dabrowski’s emotional development theory (spontaneous multilevel disintegration). Females had higher levels of emotional development. Regular physical activity was practised by 34.7% overall (25.8% of women) and 17.2% were smokers. The main social activity was visiting family members.