title: Knowledge, attitude, and behavior of students regarding 'mad cow disease'.
abstract: The aim of the current study is to assess the knowledge, attitude and behavior of students enrolled at the American University of Beirut (AUB) in Lebanon, towards mad cow disease (MCD). Three hundred and fifty-six students (199 males and 157 females), ranging in age between 17 and 25 years were randomly selected from various majors and were asked to fill out a self-administered questionnaire. It was found that 99.7% of students had heard about MCD and 85.8% knew that the cow is the host for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Seventy five percent reported that animals contract the disease through the consumption of meat and bone meal. Thirty-seven percent wrongly believed that MCD cases were reported in Lebanon and 89% were not satisfied with the measures undertaken by the Lebanese government to curb the disease. Eighty four percent were concerned about the disease and 72% stated having modified their eating habits accordingly. Moreover, students majoring in biology and other health-related majors knew significantly more about MCD compared with students majoring in non-health related majors. A surprising finding was that females were more likely to modify their eating habits than males. Hence, this study provides an insight into the knowledge, attitude, and behavior of AUB students towards MCD. A limitation of this study is that our sample is not representative of all university students in Lebanon. Future surveys should also target students enrolled in other universities in the country.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, American University of Beirut, P.O. Box 11-0236, Riyad El-Solh, 11072020 Beirut, Lebanon. sh09@aub.edu.lb
authors.forename: Steve
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Harakeh
authors.forename: Rema Adel Afifi
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Soweid
authors.forename: Nabil T
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Nassar
authors.forename: Nathalie S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Zananiri
authors.forename: Rania
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tfaily
authors.forename: Ali Hassan
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Rola
authors.forename: Shirine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Allam
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bassim
authors.forename: Bouraa Bou
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Aram
authors.forename: Bissan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Harkous
authors.forename: Tarek
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nashawi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002417:Cattle; D003625:Data Collection; D016643:Encephalopathy, Bovine Spongiform / Q000635:transmission; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007861:Lebanon; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D013334:Students