Associations among handgrip strength, dietary pattern, and physical activity level in Physical Education students.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationships among handgrip strength (HGS), dietary pattern, and physical activity level in students from a physical education and sport department. Material and Methods: In this study, 124 men and 77 women aged 18–29 y participated. HGS was evaluated in the dominant hand by using an adjustable handgrip dynamometer and expressed in Newton. Dietary pattern was evaluated by using the Dietary Pattern Index (DPI) adapted into the Turkish. Physical activity level was measured by using the short version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ). Results: The Spearman correlation coefficient showed that HGS positively correlated with IPAQ score (r=0.204, p=0.004), body mass index (r=0.559, p<0.001), and age (r=0.205, p=0.003), but negatively correlated with DPI score (r=−0.179, p=0.01). Conclusion: HGS is a useful, simple, and objective assessment tool for monitoring the physical activity levels and dietary patterns of young subjects.