Self-determination, premenstrual syndrome, and health-promoting lifestyle as factors influencing quality of life among Korean female nursing students: a cross-sectional study.

Globally, approximately 50 million people suffer from dementia, with a new case occurring every three seconds. By 2050, the number of people with dementia is expected to triple []. In Korea, dementia prevalence among individuals aged ≥ 65 years was 10.4% in 2020, affecting approximately 980,000 individuals. This number is projected to rise to 16.6%, or approximately 3.14 million individuals, by 2050, further increasing the societal and economic burden []. Dementia not only affects patients but also imposes significant caregiving and financial burdens on families and society. The global cost of dementia-related healthcare was estimated at United States dollar 1 trillion in 2010 and is expected to increase by 85% by 2030. In Korea, the annual cost of dementia management was estimated at 20.8 trillion Korean won (KRW) in 2022, representing 1% of the national gross domestic product, with projections reaching 138.1 trillion KRW by 2050 []. Dementia, which is characterized by acquired cognitive impairments that hinder daily and social functioning, has currently no available cure. Therefore, preventive management to delay its onset is essential. The World Health Organization has emphasized the importance of lifestyle changes, such as healthy eating, regular exercise, smoking cessation, and alcohol moderation, as well as the management of cardiovascular risk factors, such as obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Furthermore, mental health care and early detection of dementia are critical []. In line with this, the Ministry of Health and Welfare of South Korea had established its 4th Comprehensive Dementia Management Plan (2021–2025), which focuses on expanding dementia screening to all ages and managing suspected cases through public health initiatives []. The health belief model (HBM), which had been developed to explain individuals’ preventive health behaviors, posits that perceived threats of illness (perceived susceptibility and perceived severity), expected outcomes of health behaviors (perceived benefits and barriers), and specific cues to action motivates individuals to engage in health-promoting actions []. Subsequently, the model was expanded to include the concept of health motivation to better explain patients’ role-related behaviors []. Additionally, as health behaviors began to focus on long-term lifestyle changes, the concept of self-efficacy was incorporated into the model to enhance the explanatory power of the model for preventive behaviors [,].