Cigarettes and self-rated health among online university students.

An increasing number of university students are earning their degrees online. Thus far, the determinants of health among online university students have not been studied. The purpose of this cross-sectional internet survey was to test the association between behavioral risk factors and self-rated health in a diverse sample of online university students. Cigarette smoking was associated with lower odds of good self-rated health (OR = 0.27, P < 0.01). Compared to having zero days of mental distress, 14 or more days of mental distress was associated with lower odds of good self-rated health (OR = 0.08, P < 0.05). White students had lower odds of reporting good self-rated health compared to African-American students (OR = 0.35, P < 0.05). Health education, screening and health promotion programs should be developed for online students.