The credibility of undergraduate students in health-related disciplines promoting healthy lifestyle is connected with the expectation that they model healthy behaviors. However, studies that examine health behaviors of health majors are limited. We examined whether theory of planned behavior (TPB) and role model beliefs (RMB) were associated with college students in health-related programs (nurses, physical education, exercise science and athletic training) and their physical activity (PA) and eating behaviors.

A 40-item survey was administered among the participants. Independent variables included TPB constructs and RMB measured on a 5-point scale. Dependent variables included PA and nutrition behavior. PA was measured by students' number of days and amount of time spent exercising per week. Nutrition behavior was measured using United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidelines for eating fruits (2½ c-eq/day), vegetables (2½ c-eq/day), dairy (2 c-eq/day), grains (6 oz-eq/day), and proteins (5½ oz-eq/day). Multiple regression analyses were used to predict PA and nutrition behaviors.

A total of 271 college health majors (mean age 22.5±4.6 years) comprising nursing (n=105), exercise science (n=72), Athletic training (n=38), physical education (n=22) and other (n=31) participated in the study. Exercise science students (73.6%) and physical education students (63.6%) were more likely than nursing students (26.4%) to meet the USDA nutrition recommended guidelines (p<0.001). Regression analyses showed that outcome evaluation, behavioral belief, and RMB, were significant predictors for student physical activity behavior and they accounted for 34%, 8%, and 1% of the variance, respectively.

TPB (outcome evaluation, behavioral belief) and RMB could be used to guide programs in promoting PA and nutrition behavior among college health majors.