ArticleBMC public health2023
Relationships between physical activity, body image, BMI, depression and anxiety in Chinese college students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article in BMC public health, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Effects of different exercise interventions on quality of life in breast cancer survivors after treatment: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Pooled it
- Physical activity and mental health: a systematic review and best-evidence synthesis of mediation and moderation studies.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2024Pooled it
- Association of induced abortion with bipolar disorder and major depression from the UK Biobank: a propensity score matching and weighting analysis.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Correlation analysis of surgical outcomes and preoperative psychological status in adolescents with polydactyly/syndactyly.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2026Article
- Impact of two consecutive COVID-19 outbreaks on the physical fitness in college students: a five-year longitudinal study.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Association between physical activity and depression in university students: a systematic review and meta-analysis with public health implications.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Review
- The effect of physical exercise on social appearance anxiety among college students: the serial mediating role of social media addiction and self-objectification.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- More is not always better: longitudinal associations and nonlinear dose-response relationships between physical activity, psychological capital, and positive body image among Chinese university students.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Prevalence and determinants of food addiction among Palestinian university students: a cross-sectional study.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2025Article
- Perception Versus Actual Weight: Body Image Dissatisfaction as a Stronger Correlate of Anxiety and Depression than BMI Among Romanian Health Sciences Students.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Mirror Within: Exploring the Impact of Physical Activity on Body Image and Anxiety in Youth.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Digital stress and problematic social media use among college students: exploring dual emotional pathways and the moderating role of cognitive reappraisal.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Multidimensional Assessment of Athletic and Non-Athletic Female Students Through Analysis of BMI, Body Perception, Objectification, and Attitudes Towards the Ideal Body.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- The Relationship Between Physical Activity and Depression in College Students: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Brain sciences · 2025Review
- Prevalence and associated factors of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms among Palestinian university students.Journal of public health research · 2025Article
- Article
- Effects of COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns on college students' physical fitness: A comparative study.PloS one · 2025Article
- The Relationship Between Physical Activity Levels and Periodontal Health Status Among College Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2025Article
- Relationships among anxiety, psychological resilience, and physical activity in university students: variable-centred and person-centred perspectives.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Physical Activity, Anxiety, Depression, and Body Image in Trans Individuals: An Exploratory Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBoth depression and anxiety are worldwide burden that is not being abated with our current knowledge and treatment of the condition. Numerous clinical trials have supported that physical activity (PA) can reduce the depression and anxiety in adolescents, but little is known about its mechanism of action. Therefore, the study objectives were to explore the potential relationship between physical activity and depression and anxiety from the perspective of body image and body mass index (BMI), and to provide an important reference for future self-esteem education and health promotion intervention.
methodsThe participants in this study were 251 Chinese college students between 17 and 22 years old. Participants completed the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), the Body Image Questionnaire (BIQ), the Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) and the Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). A descriptive and correlational approach was used, using the PROCESS macro for Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS).
results(1) Physical activity was significantly negatively correlated with both depression and anxiety (t = -0.216, p < 0.001; t = -0.184, p < 0.01). (2) Body image had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between physical activity and anxiety among college students, but there was no moderating effect between depression and physical activity. BMI has no moderating effect on the two interrelationships.
conclusionThere is only body image that moderates the relationship between anxiety and physical activity.
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Registered trials
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.