A scoping review on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity and sedentary behavior in Saudi Arabia

BMC Public Health · 11 authors, 7 centres

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TL;DR

This scoping review of 19 studies found that physical activity consistently decreased and sedentary behavior increased among children, adolescents, and adults in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 lockdowns.

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524 CHARS

The studies involved children, adolescents, and adults, with data collected primarily in 2020. Results consistently indicated that in the short-term, physical activity (including exercise, walking, and park visits) was lower and sedentary behavior (including sitting time, screen time, television watching, and video gaming) was higher during or following lockdowns compared to before. The review suggests that continued tracking of these behaviors post-lockdown is important to identify subpopulations needing intervention.

STUDY TYPE

systematic_review

SPECIALTY

public health

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AI pipeline

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100% · A

ORIGINAL PAPER

PMC10041481

A scoping review on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity and sedentary behavior in Saudi Arabia

BMC Public Health

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ABSTRACT

Abstract Background In Saudi Arabia, stay-at-home orders to address the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic between March 15 and 23, 2020 and eased on May 28, 2020. We conducted a scoping review to systematically describe physical activity and sedentary behavior in Saudi Arabia associated with the timing of the lockdown. Methods We searched six databases on December 13, 2021 for articles published in English or Arabic from 2018 to the search date. Studies must have reported data from Saudi Arabia for any age and measured physical activity or sedentary behavior. Results Overall, 286 records were found; after excluding duplicates, 209 records were screened, and 19 studies were included in the review. Overall, 15 studies were cross-sectional, and 4 studies were prospective cohorts. Three studies included children and adolescents (age: 2–18 years), and 16 studies included adults (age: 15–99 years). Data collection periods were < = 5 months, with 17 studies collecting data in 2020 only, one study in 2020–2021, and one study in 2021. The median analytic sample size was 363 (interquartile range 262–640). Three studies of children/adolescents collected behaviors online at one time using parental reporting, with one also allowing self-reporting. All three studies found that physical activity was lower during and/or following the lockdown than before the lockdown. Two studies found screen time, television watching, and playing video games were higher during or following the lockdown than before the lockdown. Sixteen adult studies assessed physical activity, with 15 utilizing self-reporting and one using accelerometry. Physical activity, exercise, walking, and park visits were all lower during or following the lockdown than before the lockdown. Six adult studies assessed sedentary behavior using self-report. Sitting time (4 studies) and screen time (2 studies) were higher during or following the lockdown than before the lockdown. Conclusions Among children, adolescents, and adults, studies consistently indicated that in the short-term, physical activity decreased and sedentary behavior increased in conjunction with the movement restrictions. Given the widespread impact of the pandemic on other health behaviors, it would be important to continue tracking behaviors post-lockdown and identify subpopulations that may not have returned to their physical activity and sedentary behavior to pre-pandemic levels to focus on intervention efforts. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-023-15422-3. Keywords: COVID-19, Physical activity, Middle East region, Saudi Arabia, Sedentary behavior, Surveillance

CITATION EXPORT

Kelly R Evenson, Shaima A Alothman, Christopher C Moore et al.. A scoping review on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity and sedentary behavior in Saudi Arabia. BMC Public Health. (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-023-15422-3

AUTHORS

11 · 7 CENTRES

Kelly R Evenson, Shaima A Alothman, Christopher C Moore, Mariam M Hamza, Severin Rakic, Reem F Alsukait, Christopher H Herbst, Baian A Baattaiah, Reem AlAhmed, Hazzaa M Al-Hazzaa, Saleh A Alqahtani

1Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, NC Chapel Hill, USA
2Lifestyle and Health Research Center, Health Science Research Center, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
3World Bank Group, Washington, D.C USA
4Department of Community Health Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
5Department of Physical Therapy, Faculty of Medical Rehabilitation Sciences, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
6King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
7Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD USA