[Behavioral predisposing and social habits related to sexual life in university students]

University students are usually a risk group in terms of their sexual life, either because of social habits or because of the behavioral predisposers to which they are exposed. This article analyse the relationship between these factors.

To establish the frequency and relationship between behavioral and social predisposers with active sexual life (ASL) in university students.

Cross-sectional study, carried out in 360 medical students. The data of sexual life and the behavioral and social factors associated with it were analyzed through prevalences with their confidence intervals, as well as the calculation of the Odds Ratio (OR).

The results showed that 58.9% (95%CI: 53.7%-63.9%) of the students have ever had sexual intercourse. The only behavioral predisposing associated with ASL was the absence of religious practices (OR: 2.6; 95%CI: 1.6-4.1; p < 0.001), while all the habits and social behaviors analyzed were significantly associated with ASL, the most common being attendance at parties (77.8%) and the consumption of alcoholic beverages (67.2%).

Our results show that young people present a wide range of behavioral and social characteristics that influence their sexual life, therefore, implementing strategies aimed at protecting sexual and reproductive health is also necessary in this age group.