Abstract
The present study examined the relationship between taking physical education and health-related courses in
the first year of university and the acquisition and maintenance of exercise habits and physical and mental
health in the student’s second year. The study population consisted of university students was 2,483 in
FY2017 and 2,352 in FY2018. Of these, the 2,293 students (1,744 men, 18.5 ± 1.0 years old; 549 women,
18.6 ± 1.0 years old) who responded to the self-administered questionnaire survey on daily living habits in
both years were included in the analysis. The results showed that taking physical education and health-related
courses in the first year was significantly related to exercise habits the following spring. The results also
suggested that these courses were more strongly related to mental health than physical health. In addition,
men were significantly more likely to acquire a new exercise habit and had more improved mental health. In
the future, it is necessary to clarify the causal relationship between taking physical education and healthrelated courses and exercise habits and the maintenance and acquisition of physical and mental health, in
addition to developing effective support methods for students who dislike gender differences and exercise.
