Does Physical Activity in Youth Contribute to Quitting Bad Habits?

Abstract

The article's focus is to assess the impact of physical activity on alcohol and tobacco consumption among young Russians aged 18 to 24. The Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS-HSE) data for the period 2013-2019 years was used to conduct the empirical analysis. The panel sample included 9 914 observations (4 726 men and 5 188 women). The econometric analysis found that physically active men, as expected, are more likely to lead a healthy lifestyle: they are less likely to smoke and consume alcohol compared to those who do not do exercises or sports. At the same time, the assumption that young women engaged in physical activity are less susceptible to unhealthy habits was not confirmed: a positive correlation was found between the physical activity of this group of respondents and their probability of drinking alcohol, as well as between the intensity of physical activity and the probability of smoking. The results of this study can help develop public policy measures to encourage young Russians to be more physically active and give up unhealthy habits.

Acknowledgments. The study was supported by the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the HSE University as part of the authors' work in the Research Working Group to evaluate the effectiveness of state social programs and individual social policy measures in 2020-2021.