Religion and Health
Year:2015 | Volume:3 | Issue:1 |Papers Count:11

Background and Purpose: Mental health as one of the two major dimensions of health is a prerequisite for an effective and fulfilling life. Considering the unique role of students as future administrators in communities, it is necessary to guarantee their mental health and identify and eliminate negative factors, which adversely affect their mental health. Therefore, this study was performed to survey the relationship between Islamic lifestyle and students’ mental health in Birjand University.Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of all students at Birjand University. For this purpose, 300 students (150 male and 150 female students) were selected via random cluster sampling in 2013-2014. The study tools included the General Health Questionnaire by Goldberg and Islamic Lifestyle Questionnaire (short form) by Kaviani. For data analysis, Pearson’s correlation coefficient test, multiple linear regression analysis, and Fisher’s test were performed, using SPSS.Results: Based on the findings, there was a significant positive relationship between Islamic lifestyle and mental health (P<0.05). Pearson's correlation coefficient between Islamic lifestyle and mental health was estimated at 0.24. The findings showed that 6% of variance in mental health was associated with Islamic lifestyle. Moreover, the findings indicated a significant positive correlation between these variables in the female group (P<0.05); however, no significant correlation was found in the male group (P<0.05). Based on Fisher’s test, mental health was more significantly correlated with Islamic lifestyle in the female group, compared to the male group (95% CI, z>1.96).Conclusion: Based on the findings, there was a meaningful correlation between Islamic lifestyle and mental health among female and male participants. Also, mental health had a stronger correlation with Islamic lifestyle among females than males. Therefore, social and demographic characteristics may play a more significant role in mental health than gender.

Background and Purpose: Selecting a marriage partner is an influential factor in an individual's mental health and lifestyle. The impacts of marriage on reducing personal and social disorders have been well determined. For a systematic planning and raising awareness among the youth about Quranic and religious criteria for marriage, it is essential to familiarize them with these principles. The present study was conducted to identify single students' perspectives on the criteria for marriage and determine the correspondence of these criteria with Quranic and religious principles at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2013.Materials and Methods: In this analytical, descriptive study, 360 single female and male subjects were selected via random sampling at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2013. The data collection tools included a questionnaire on demographic characteristics, criteria for marriage and causes of decline in marriage. The criteria for marriage were rated as "very important", "important', "somehow important", "unimportant", and "very unimportant". Causes of decline in marriage were rated as follows: "Completely agree", "agree", "somehow agree", "disagree", and "completely disagree". For data analysis, descriptive statistics and Chi-square test were applied, using SPSS version 20.Results: In this study, 67.2% of the participants were female (age range: 18-22 years). In total, 70% of the students were in educational semesters 1-4. As the findings indicated, honesty (96.9%), which is a Quranic recommendation to all Muslims, was one of the most significant criteria. The students' perspectives on parental satisfaction, common religion, good behavior, avoidance of sinful acts, and lack of criminal records, which are also emphasized in Islam, had a significant relationship in two genders.Conclusion: According to the research findings, students' criteria for marriage are based on the dominant culture and religion in the society.Therefore, in order to guarantee students' religious health, a more rigorous plan should be applied to institutionalize marriage and promote students' perspective on this institution.

Background and Purpose: Spirituality is part of the psycho-spiritual dimension and encourages a feeling of piety in an individual. One can feel overjoyed and blessed if his/her main concern in life is to attain true intimacy with God. The purpose of this study was to determine students' experiences and perspectives about spiritual vitality at Golestan University of Medical Sciences in 2011.Materials and Methods: In this qualitative study, 50 students were recruited via purposeful sampling by considering maximum variety and data saturation. For data collection, semi-structured interviews were conducted. The interviews were transcribed word by word and were analyzed through content analysis. Informed consent forms (about enrollment in the study and voice recording) were obtained from the participants.Results: Based on data analysis, major themes including "intimacy with God", "freshness and vitality", "calmness", "activities affecting spiritual vitality", and "real and perpetual vitality" were extracted.Conclusion: The students could experience a sense of spiritual vitality if they were able to establish a close relationship with God and act based on His will.

Background and Purpose: Patients under dialysis may experience various spiritual, physical, and mental disorders. Religious behaviors, especially prayer, can enhance spiritual health and positive attitude among these patients. The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship between prayer and spiritual health in patients under dialysis in Ilam, Iran in 2014.Materials and Methods: In total, 150 patients, referring to specialized clinics and hospitals of Ilam, were selected via available sampling. The subjects completed the Spiritual Health Questionnaire by Paloutzian and Ellison and Prayer Questionnaire by Paloma and Pendelton. Data were analyzed, using Pearson's correlation coefficient test and multiple regression analysis.Results: The results showed a significant positive correlation between the dimensions of prayer (i.e., frequency of praying, prior experience of prayer, and attitudes towards praying) and spiritual health. The highest correlation coefficient was related to the prior experience of praying, which was the most important predictive variable in this study. The regression coefficient between prayer and spiritual health was statistically significant at<0.001.Conclusion: The present findings highlighted the relationship between prayer and spiritual health in patients under dialysis in Ilam, Iran. Therefore, different dimensions of prayer, and praying in general, are important in enhancing patients' spiritual health and mental health.

Background and Purpose: Considering the increased rate of crimes and the attributed damages in societies, determining the factors, which enhance or prevent crime, is a vital issue in the field of psychology. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between spiritual intelligence and difficulty in emotional adjustment.Materials and Methods: In this descriptive, correlational study, a total of 70 prisoners were randomly recruited from Mashhad Prison in 2014. Data collection tools included questionnaires on emotional adjustment difficulty and spiritual intelligence. For data analysis, descriptive statistics were calculated, and Pearson’s correlation test, analysis of variance, and path analysis were performed.Results: The results showed a significant negative relationship between difficulty in emotional adjustment and components of spiritual intelligence (P<0.01). The results of path analysis showed that "understanding and communicating with the source of universe" could directly affect difficulty in emotional adjustment. Also, "spiritual life or relying on the inner core" affected emotional adjustment. Additionally, the second component of spiritual intelligence (spiritual life or relying on the inner core) could directly or indirectly predict the difficulty of emotional adjustment; this causal relationship was statistically significant.Conclusion: Based on the findings, we can conclude that spirituality and emotional adjustment can be regarded as important factors in an individual's adaptation with stress-inducing factors and may influence crime prevention. Generally, spirituality could predict the decline in emotional adjustment difficulty.

Background and Purpose: Risky decisions play a pivotal role in personal and social life, and disruptions in these decisions may lead to impulsive behaviors in individuals. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between spiritual health, self-esteem and impulsivity in students of Shahid Chamran University in Ahwaz, Iran.Materials and Methods: This correlative study was conducted on 285 students selected by cluster random sampling. Subjects completed three questionnaires about spiritual health, self-esteem and impulsivity. Spiritual health and self-esteem were considered as predictors, and impulsivity was considered as response variable. Data analysis was performed using Pearson’s correlation-coefficient and multivariate regression analysis.Results: In this study, subjects with high self-esteem and spiritual health were observed to have lower impulsivity. In addition, coefficients of linear regression with repeated input pattern to combine multiple variables for spiritual health and self-esteem with impulsivity were significant (P=0.001).Conclusion: According to the results of this study, there was a significant correlation between spiritual health, self-esteem and impulsivity in students of Shahid Chamran University. In other words, students with higher spiritual health and self-esteem had lower impulsivity.

Background and Purpose: Recent advances in science and technology have facilitated living conditions for people around the world. On the other hand, rapid social changes and complexities of modern life threaten the health and welfare of humans. Therefore, disorders such as anxiety, depression, unreasonable resentment and incompetence have been highly prevalent in different communities. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between religious attitude and mental issues such as depression, anxiety and stress among students of Guilan University, Iran during 2012-2013.Materials and Methods: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted on all the students of Guilan University (n=100) during 2012-2013. Participants were selected by cluster sampling, and data were collected using religious attitudes questionnaire (Serajzadeh, 1998) and Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). Data analysis was performed using Pearson's correlation-coefficient.Results: In this study, religious attitude had a significant negative correlation with depression (P<0.05, r=-0.258) and stress (P<0.05, r=-0.247). However, no significant correlation was found between religious attitude and anxiety among students (P<0.08, r=-0.192).Conclusion: According to the results of this study, level of mental health was more desirable in individuals with religious attitudes.

Background and Purpose: Cancer is one of the worst human experiences. This condition could lead to serious crises in one’s life. Religious beliefs are of great value among patients suffering from different conditions. Among religious and spiritual resources, prayer is regarded as the most commonly applied practice. In fact, prayer as the most powerful resource for resolving problems can release spiritual energy. The present study was performed to determine the dimensions of prayer in cancer patients, referring to the food and drug center of Golestan University of Medical Sciences in 2013.Materials and Methods: In this descriptive, correlational study, 96 cancer patients under treatment with agonist drugs, referring to the food and drug center of Golestan University of Medical Sciences, were assessed. Data were collected, using a demographic questionnaire and the prayer questionnaire by Paloma and Pendleton. For statistical analysis, descriptive (e.g., frequency, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (ANOVA) were calculated, using SPSS version 16.Results: Based on the findings, the mean score of prayer frequency was 91.7±21.7, the mean score of prior prayer experience was 45.6±9.8, and the mean score of attitude towards prayer was 33.9±8.0. The statistical analysis showed a significant difference among the dimensions of prayer. There was a significant correlation between prayer frequency and prior experience of prayer (P<0.01), prayer frequency and attitude towards prayer (P<0.005), and previous experience of prayer and attitude towards prayer (P<0.01). However, multiple linear regression analysis did not show a significant association between the dimensions of prayer and demographic characteristics.Conclusion: Considering the positive effects of prayer, we can conclude that this practice plays a strong supporting role in life and promotes ones’ adjustment with the side-effects of diseases such as cancer. Therefore, nurses, as the most important members of healthcare teams, can enhance care provision for cancer patients by recognizing the psychological dimensions.

Considering the importance of spiritual health in maintaining and improving one's mental health, the current study aimed to study the role of trust in God in the formation, maintenance, and development of mental health. In this review study, keywords such as "trust in God", "believers", and other synonymous words were searched in national and international databases. Moreover, the characteristics of prophets, saints, and believers were studied in Quran and Quran commentaries. The review of Islamic resources indicated the numerous effects of trust in God on mental health. In fact, one who trusts in God can attain personal coherence by believing in the unity of divine acts. Moreover, one's tolerance can be reinforced by giving meaning to world’s catastrophic events and sufferings. Strong willpower for decision-making, adaptation to the environment, inner peace and confidence, freedom from disappointment and despair, return from wrongdoing, patience, and hope for God's blessings and forgiveness are among other major effects of faith in God on mental health. Considering the effects of trust in God on different aspects of human life, attention to this religious teaching can pave the way for confronting life's unpleasant events and becoming a healthy human being. Therefore, it is necessary for health authorities to institutionalize this Quranic teaching to confront disruptive factors for mental health.

Background and Purpose: Special occasions and events can affect the frequency of admissions to emergency departments. Ramadan fasting is one of the most important events in Islamic communities. Medically, the majority of studies on this subject have evaluated a limited number of diseases and have focused on few laboratory or clinical changes during this month. The purpose of this study was to analyze the pattern of emergency admissions at Baqiyatallah Hospital and to compare the changes during this month with other months of the year during 2008-2012.Materials and Methods: A questionnaire was designed with respect to variables recorded in patients' medical files available at the hospital emergency department. Systematically, medical files registered within the mentioned period were retrieved, and data were recorded in the questionnaire. For data analysis, SPSS version 18.0 was applied.Results: Gastrointestinal problems were the main cause of emergency admissions in the month of Shaban. In Ramadan, the major causes were urogenital diseases, followed by upper limb problems and cardiac disorders. Also, in the month of Shawwal, pulmonary symptoms were the leading cause of emergency admissions. However, there was no significant difference in the major complaints of patients during admissions.Conclusion: According to the findings, the pattern of hospital admissions during Ramadan did not differ from Shawwal or Shaban (even within ten-day periods during the month).

Background and Purpose: Quran is the main Islamic manuscript in which fundamental human issues such as nutrition are taken into account. Since awareness is a prerequisite for knowledge and knowledge is the backbone of performance and behavior in humans, this study aimed to determine the level of students' knowledge and performance regarding the use of foodstuffs and herbs recommended by Quran at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2013.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 308 students, selected via available sampling at Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2013. Data were collected, using a valid and reliable questionnaire. For data analysis, t-test was applied.Results: In total, 57.8%, 30.7%, and 11.6% of the participants were students of general PhD, undergraduate level and other educational levels, respectively. Regarding foodstuffs recommended by Quran, the most and least accurate answers were related to olive and salt, respectively. The mean score of awareness was 2.27±0.68, which was significantly different from the t-value (3.5) (P<0.001). Also, the mean score of performance regarding the use of these foodstuffs was 2.58±0.48, which was significantly different from the T-value (P<0.001).Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, the subjects' level of knowledge and performance was significantly lower than the accepted thresholds. Therefore, it is recommended to revise the educational curricula to motivate the students towards using foodstuffs recommended by Quran.