Prescriptive medicine: the importance of preparing Canadian medical students to counsel patients toward physical activity.

BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) is powerful for preventing and treating many chronic diseases. Physicians' own PA behaviors are correlated with their likelihood to counsel patients regarding PA. Medical students' PA-related attitudes and behaviors reflect what can be expected from our future physicians.
METHODS: A 27-item online survey was used to determine the percentage of Canadian medical students meeting the Canadian physical activity recommendations, and their self-reported perception of relevance and frequency of exercise counseling during patient encounters. We generated cross-tabulations with the independent covariates and our statistical comparison was based on the generalized estimating equation (GEE) algorithm to adjust for schools (clusters).
RESULTS: While 64% (969/1510) of medical students met the MVPA recommendation, only 25% discussed PA counseling with patients. Most (80% and 90%, respectfully) believed physicians should adhere to a healthy lifestyle to effectively encourage their patients to do so, and that their credibility increased if they stayed fit themselves.
CONCLUSIONS: Medical students are interested in and receptive to the importance of PA. However, not only is there improvement needed for the more than one-third of medical students who are insufficiently active themselves, but substantial change is needed regarding the vast majority of students' current counseling behaviors.