Religious Involvement and Health-Related Behaviors Among Black Seventh-Day Adventists in Canada

Background: Most studies that involve Black Seventh-Day Adventists (SDAs) have been conducted in the United States. We sought to examine the association between religious involvement and lifestyle practices among Black SDAs in Canada. Method: A convenience sample of 509 Black SDA church members 18 years and older completed a self-administered questionnaire, assessing religious involvement and seven lifestyle practices promoted by the SDA church: diet, physical activity, water intake, exposure to sunlight, alcohol use, caffeine and tobacco use, and rest. Results: Compliance with lifestyle practices ranged from a low of 10% meeting fitness guidelines to a high of 99% abstaining from tobacco products. Religious involvement and lifestyle were positively related (rs = .11, p < .05). Multivariate analyses indicated that private religious practice (β = .16, p =.003), importance of the health principles (β = .17, p = .003), and acceptance of health principles (β = .65, p = .00001) significantly predicted the number of behaviors practiced. Conclusion: Greater religious involvement is associated with positive lifestyle practices but is not an independent predictor of lifestyle practices for Black Canadian SDAs.