Health risk behaviors and mental health problems are associated with morbidity and premature mortality among adolescents. Understanding the magnitude of the problem may improve adolescent health status. The Adolescent Health Survey was conducted to collect data on health risk behaviors among Malaysian school-going adolescents using self-administered questionnaires. A 2-stage stratified cluster sampling design was used and samplings weights were calculated to ensure representativeness to the general population. A total of 27 497 out of 30 823 school-going adolescents completed the questionnaires, yielded an 89.2% overall response rate. The methodology was robust to ensure valid estimation on the prevalence of health problems among Malaysian school-going adolescents.

Parental protective factors do play an important role in preventing Internet addiction. A self-administered questionnaire was used to measure health risk behaviors among Malaysian adolescents. The prevalence of Internet addiction was significantly higher among adolescents with perceived lack of parental supervision (30.1% [95% confidence interval (CI) = 28.7-31.4]) and lack of parental connectedness (30.1% [95% CI = 28.5-31.7]), compared with their counterparts. Adolescents who perceived a lack of parental supervision, respect for privacy, connectedness, and bonding were more likely to have Internet addiction: (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.27-1.52), (aOR = 1.23; 95% CI = 1.16-1.31), (aOR = 1.09; 95% CI = 1.02-1.16), (aOR = 1.06; 95% CI = 1.00-1.12), respectively. Among girls, Internet addiction was associated with those who perceived lack in all 4 parental factors, while among boys, those who perceived lack of parental supervision and respect for privacy were more prone to Internet addiction.