Background: Suboptimal health status (SHS) is a reversible intermediate state between health and disease. It is associatedwith the early development of chronic conditions and is strongly influenced by lifestyle factors. Medical training may fosterunhealthy lifestyle patterns that increase long-term health risk. This study assessed the prevalence of SHS and theassociations of insomnia and smartphone addiction with SHS among medical students in Palestine. Methods: A multi-university cross-sectional study was conducted among 461 medical students from five medical faculties in the West Bank,Palestine, between October 2025 and January 2026. Data were collected using a structured online questionnaire in-corporating the 25-item Suboptimal Health Status Questionnaire (SHSQ-25), the Smartphone Addiction Scale–Short Version(SAS-SV), and the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS). Group differences were examined using chi-square and independent t-tests,and binary logistic regression was performed to identify factors independently associated with SHS. Results: Among461 participants (mean age: 20.93 ± 2.02 years; 55.1% female), 47.5% were classified with SHS, 67.2% had smartphoneaddiction, and 65.5% reported insomnia. In multivariable logistic regression, insomnia showed the strongest associationwith SHS (AOR = 7.26, 95% CI: 4.26–12.39, p < 0.001), followed by smartphone addiction (AOR = 2.48, 95% CI: 1.47–4.20, p <0.001). Conclusion: SHS was common among Palestinian medical students; insomnia and smartphone addiction wereindependently associated with SHS. These findings support the need for further longitudinal research and targeted sleep anddigital health focused interventions to address SHS and promote student well-being.KeywordsSuboptimal health, Smartphone addiction, Insomnia, Medical students, Lifestyle
 

Title

SAGE Open Medicine

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Publisher Country

Palestine

Indexing

Scopus

Impact Factor

2.2

Publication Type

Both (Printed and Online)

Volume

14

Year

2026

Pages

--