Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28351363›Full record

SynthesisThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2017

Sedentary behaviour and adiposity in youth: a systematic review of reviews and analysis of causality.

Stuart J H Biddle, Enrique García Bengoechea, Glen Wiesner

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 111 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
111citing papers in PubMed, 10 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

111 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  10. Interventions to improve physical activity among socioeconomically disadvantaged groups: an umbrella review.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2018
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51 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Stuart J H BiddleInstitute of Sport, Exercise & Active Living, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia. stuart.biddle@usq.edu.au.
Enrique García BengoecheaInstitute of Sport, Exercise & Active Living, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.
Glen WiesnerInstitute of Sport, Exercise & Active Living, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSedentary behaviour (sitting time) has becoming a very popular topic for research and translation since early studies on TV viewing in children in the 1980s. The most studied area for sedentary behaviour health outcomes has been adiposity in young people. However, the literature is replete with inconsistencies.

methodsWe conducted a systematic review of systematic reviews and meta-analyses to provide a comprehensive analysis of evidence and state-of-the-art synthesis on whether sedentary behaviours are associated with adiposity in young people, and to what extent any association can be considered 'causal'. Searches yielded 29 systematic reviews of over 450 separate papers. We analysed results by observational (cross-sectional and longitudinal) and intervention designs.

resultsSmall associations were reported for screen time and adiposity from cross-sectional evidence, but associations were less consistent from longitudinal studies. Studies using objective accelerometer measures of sedentary behaviour yielded null associations. Most studies assessed BMI/BMI-z. Interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour produced modest effects for weight status and adiposity. Accounting for effects from sedentary behaviour reduction alone is difficult as many interventions included additional changes in behaviour, such as physical activity and dietary intake. Analysis of causality guided by the classic Bradford Hill criteria concluded that there is no evidence for a causal association between sedentary behaviour and adiposity in youth, although a small dose-response association exists.

conclusionsAssociations between sedentary behaviour and adiposity in children and adolescents are small to very small and there is little to no evidence that this association is causal. This remains a complex field with different exposure and outcome measures and research designs. But claims for 'clear' associations between sedentary behaviour and adiposity in youth, and certainly for causality, are premature or misguided.

Indexed as

AdiposityBody Mass IndexBody WeightExerciseSedentary BehaviorAdolescentChildComputersFemaleHumansMalePediatric ObesityTelevisionVideo GamesAdolescentsBMIChildrenObesityScreen timeSedentaryTelevisionWeight status

Identifiers

PMID28351363
PMCPMC5371200

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.