Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30534044›Full record

ReviewInternational journal of health sciences

Physical inactivity in Saudi Arabia revisited: A systematic review of inactivity prevalence and perceived barriers to active living.

Hazzaa M Al-Hazzaa

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC
In one paragraph

Review in International journal of health sciences. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 190 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
190citing papers in PubMed, 10 pooled it
10.5field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
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

190 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 304 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Guideline
  2. Pooled it
  3. Pooled it
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Pooled it
  7. Pooled it
  8. Prevalence, risk factors, and interventions for obesity in Saudi Arabia: A systematic review.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2022
    Pooled it
  9. Pooled it
  10. Pooled it
  11. Trial
  12. Trial
  13. Trial
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Article
  18. Article
  19. Article
  20. Exercise Perceptions, Barriers, and Self-Efficacy Among Adults in Kuwait During the COVID-19 Pandemic.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026
    Article

130 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

1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.

Hazzaa M Al-HazzaaLifestyle and Health Research, Health Science Research Center, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University · SA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesSaudi Arabia has recently witnessed enormous economic growth accompanied by undesirable lifestyle behaviors, along with an associated increase in non-communicable diseases (NCD's). This systematic review presents a comprehensive and an updated overview of the status of physical activity (PA) or inactivity among the Saudi population and examines the major barriers and correlates of PA.

methodsA systematic search was conducted using MEDLINE and Google Scholar databases. The electronic search yielded an initial 434 articles. However, the majority of these articles were eliminated because they did not meet the inclusion criteria. The remaining relevant papers were 65 articles that became the bases for this review.

resultsThe majority of Saudi children, youth and adults were not active enough to meet the recommended guidelines for moderate to vigorous PA. Saudi females were disproportionately less active than males, beginning from early school years. The proportions of Saudis who are at risk of inactivity are exceedingly higher than those at risk for other coronary heart diseases. Active Saudi boys tend to have favorable levels of blood lipids and body composition profile compared to inactive boys. Increased urbanization, crowded traffic, extreme weather, cultural barriers, lack of social support, the absence of female school PA program and lack of time and resources, all make PA a difficult choice for the Saudis.

conclusionMore intensified efforts toward promoting PA and reducing sedentary behaviors among the Saudi population are needed to curtail the risks of NCD's.

Indexed as

Barriersexercisehealth promotioninactivitynon-communicable diseasephysical activity

Identifiers

PMID30534044
PMCPMC6257875
OpenAlexW2898668272

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-SA
Read underepoch 390

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.