Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40003513›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2025

Physical Activity as a Mediator in the Relationship Between Body Image Perception and Low Mood in Adolescents.

Geiziane Leite Rodrigues Melo, Larissa Alves Maciel, Rafaela Espírito Santo, Caroline Brand, Cézane Priscila Reuter, Artūras Razbadauskas, Alona Rauckienė-Michaelsson, Cesar Agostinis-Sobrinho

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed, 1 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

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. The Association Between Affect and Adiposity in Childhood and Adolescence: A Systematic Review.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Article
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

8 authors.

Geiziane Leite Rodrigues MeloHealth Research and Innovation Science Centre, Klaipeda University, 92294 Klaipeda, Lithuania.ORCID 0000-0002-7800-2212
Larissa Alves MacielPostgraduate Program in Physical Education, Catholic University of Brasilia, Taguatinga 71966-700, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0003-0743-1746
Rafaela Espírito SantoHealth Research and Innovation Science Centre, Klaipeda University, 92294 Klaipeda, Lithuania.ORCID 0000-0002-5518-3479
Caroline BrandIRyS Group, Physical Education School, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso 2340025, Chile.
Cézane Priscila ReuterGraduate Program in Health Promotion, University of Santa Cruz do Sul (UNISC), Santa Cruz do Sul 96815-900, Brazil.ORCID 0000-0002-4549-3959
Artūras RazbadauskasHealth Research and Innovation Science Centre, Klaipeda University, 92294 Klaipeda, Lithuania.ORCID 0000-0002-6524-5354
Alona Rauckienė-MichaelssonHealth Research and Innovation Science Centre, Klaipeda University, 92294 Klaipeda, Lithuania.
Cesar Agostinis-SobrinhoHealth Research and Innovation Science Centre, Klaipeda University, 92294 Klaipeda, Lithuania.ORCID 0000-0001-9104-9042

Funding

Lietuvos mokslo taryba ir Lietuvos Respublikos švietimo, mokslo ir sporto ministerija Nr. S-A-UEI-23-9
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Body image (BI) plays a critical role in mental health, with negative perceptions often linked to feelings of low mood. Physical activity (PA) has been shown to enhance self-acceptance and reduce negative emotions, suggesting it may help mitigate the impact of BI on low mood. This study examines the relationship between BI and low mood among adolescents, and explores the role of PA as a mediator in this relationship. The study had a cross-sectional design. Data were collected from 154,183 adolescents (average age 13.6 ± 1.6 years) across 43 countries, using the 2017/2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey. BI was assessed through self-perceived body size, low mood was measured on a scale from "about every day" to "rarely or never", and PA was evaluated by the number of days per week participants engaged in at least 60 min of activity. The study used multinomial logistic regression and a mediation model to analyze the relationships of BI, PA, and BMI with low mood. The multinomial logistic regression showed that daily PA reduces the risk of low mood, especially with higher PA frequency, such as PA on 6 days (OR = 0.72) and PA on 5 days (OR = 0.86). Age, BMI, BI, and sex also influence low mood, with males showing lower odds (OR = 0.40 to 0.77), normal weight individuals having a reduced risk, and thinner individuals having lower odds of low mood (OR = 0.12 to 0.50), with PA partially mediating the relationship between BI and low mood (

Indexed as

AffectBody ImageExerciseAdolescentChildCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMaleadolescencebody imagelifestylemental healthphysical activity

Identifiers

PMID40003513
PMCPMC11855625

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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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.