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. 2025 Sep 30;25(1):3181.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-24501-6.

Clustering of lifestyle factors and the relationship with mental health among college students: a latent profile analysis

Gusonghan Maitiniyazi #  1   2 , Maierhaba Dilimulati #  3   4 , Remila Abulaiti  3 , Zulihuma Nijiati  3 , Nazhakaiti Tuergong  3 , Ting Ma  3 , Chunpeng Li  3 , Shufang Xia  5
Affiliations

Clustering of lifestyle factors and the relationship with mental health among college students: a latent profile analysis

Gusonghan Maitiniyazi et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: While substantial evidence links single lifestyle factors to mental health, research on how multiple co-occurring healthy lifestyle behaviors relate to mental health, particularly among college students, remains limited. This study aimed to identify distinct profiles of healthy lifestyle behaviors and examine their associations with mental health among college students.

Method: This cross-sectional study included 1340 college students (mean age = 19.4 years; SD = 1.2). Self-reported data were collected on diet, sleep, physical activity (PA), screen time, and sedentary behavior. Mental health was assessed using the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). Latent profile analysis was used to identify groups with similar lifestyle characteristics. Multiple linear regression was applied to examine associations between lifestyle profiles and mental health.

Result: Three lifestyle profiles were identified: "Active Engagement" (n = 520, 38.8%), "Moderate Engagement" (n = 478, 35.7%), and "Negative Engagement" (n = 342, 25.5%). These groups showed significant differences in anxiety, depression and stress levels (p < 0.001). Monthly family income and sex predicted profile membership. Compared with the "Active Engagement" group, the "Moderate Engagement" and "Negative Engagement" groups showed a higher risk of mental health problems.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that interventions specifically targeting the active lifestyle pattern (characterized by the higher PA, low sedentary behavior and screen time) may be particularly effective for improving mental health in college students, moving beyond simply promoting single health behaviors.

Keywords: Anxiety; College students; Depression; Latent profile analysis; Lifestyle; Mental health.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: Our study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki, which serves as a fundamental guide for medical research involving human participants. We also complied with the appropriate national research guidelines and regulations applicable to our study. All research procedures were reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Uyghur Medicine College, ensuring that the rights, safety, and well-being of participants were protected throughout the study. Electronic informed consent was given by each participate who agreed to take part in the study. Consent for publication: The present study contains no identifiable individual personal data. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Latent profiles of college students’ lifestyles. Colored lines represent average z-scores for each lifestyle behaviors across each profile
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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