Discordance between lifestyle-related health behaviors and beliefs of urban mainland Chinese: A questionnaire study with implications for targeting health education

Morbidity and mortality in China are increasingly associated with lifestyle behaviors, e.g., smoking, poor nutritional choices, and physical inactivity. Lifestyle-related non-communicable diseases (e.g., hypertension, stroke, heart disease, lung disease) are at critical levels globally, in turn their socioeconomic burdens. Knowledge of lifestyle-related health behaviors and beliefs of mainland Chinese would help inform the design and targeting of cost-effective health education for individuals and campaigns in the interests of promoting and protecting health, and preventing disease. This study's objective was to describe the lifestyle behaviors and beliefs of a sample of urban mainland Chinese, and their congruence with evidence-based guidelines for maximal health