scholarly journals Impact of Knowledge and Attitude on Saudis’ Physical Activity Practice and Inactivity Barriers: A Questionnaire-based Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (E) ◽  
pp. 50-58
Author(s):  
Naif Albalawi ◽  
Moath M. Alshehri ◽  
Moshari A. Al-ghamdi ◽  
Mohammed A. Alshehri ◽  
Mohamed S. Abdel-Maksoud ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND: Community participation in physical activity is considered a major public health preference of WHO. Saudi Arabia in the last decades faced many tremendous economic changes leading to adoption of western dietary habits associated with sedentary lifestyle. AIM: We aimed to study the relationship between both physical activity knowledge and attitude of community to the practice of individuals. METHODS: We used a questionnaire consists of a mixture of closed-ended questions. Participants were recruited through direct meetings in local markets, schools, and workplaces. Seven hundred and sixty six individuals agreed to participate. RESULTS: Overall correct answers to questions about importance of physical activity were 76.58%. The predominance of participants’ attitude was to establish public places for physical activity in each neighborhood (92.1%). Participants acknowledged that they exercise to improve their health (47.5%). Participants mainly perform light exercises (47.2%) on basis of 1–3 times weekly (48.9%). About 90.8% of participants admitted that they like to increase duration of their physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: Overall physical activity practice of participants’ needs encourage overcoming obstacles that prevent individuals from practicing especially lack of time.

Author(s):  
Maalem Haasan Al- Moaleem

  This study was conducted in order to identify the dietary habits of fish consumption in the province of Delam in Saudi Arabia where four hundred and fifty questionnaire were distributed to the employees of Prince Sattam bin Abdulaziz University during the month of Rabee I until Rajab 1440H. The results of the analysis in three hundred answered questionnaire showed that the sample of Saudis was (84.7%) and the percentage of university education (68.7%). The study showed that fish meat ranked third in the preference for meat types and that the fresh fish is preferred in the purchase followed by canned fish. The preferred types of fish are shrimp, grouper, kennad, net, poetic, nagel, and white. Moreover, the study confirmed that (46.3%) of individuals prefer to eat it once a week, cooked at home, and grilled. Furthermore, preferred side dish with fish was fried potatoes. The study indicates that the percentage of fish consumed by non- Saudis is higher which was twice in the week for non- Saudis and once a week for Saudis. This may be due to different dietary habits among individuals or the impact of prices, consumption habits, or distance from the coast. The study concluded the need for further studies to educate individuals about the benefits of fish and the importance of Public Health.  


2013 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 204-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. M. Al-Hazzaa ◽  
H. I. Al-Sobayel ◽  
N. A. Abahussain ◽  
D. M. Qahwaji ◽  
M. A. Alahmadi ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (10A) ◽  
pp. 1722-1728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leen Haerens ◽  
Carine Vereecken ◽  
Lea Maes ◽  
Ilse De Bourdeaudhuij

AbstractObjectiveTo explore the relationship between several physical activity (PA) and dietary behaviours and BMI Z-score and to investigate the relationship between changes in these variables and in the BMI Z-score over a 4-year period from childhood to adolescence.DesignLongitudinal study in which children were included in the fifth grade and measured for four consecutive years. Dietary and PA behaviours as well as height and weight were measured by means of self-reported validated questionnaires.SettingFifty-nine Flemish elementary schools.SubjectsThe baseline sample consisted of 51·9 % boys and the mean age was 10 (sd 0·4) years. During the first measurement year (2002), data on 1670 fifth graders were gathered. These measurements were repeated after 1 (n 1557), 2 (n 1151) and 3 (n 807) years.ResultsSignificant inverse relationships with BMI Z-score were observed for frequency of breakfast consumption (β = −0·033, se = 0·012) and frequency of sports participation (β = −0·011, se = 0·004) across four time points. Significant inverse relationships between changes in BMI Z-score and changes in frequency of sports participation (β = −0·011, se = 0·006) and hours of physical education (PE; β = −0·052, se = 0·023) were observed, meaning that decreases in sports participation and hours spent in PE were associated with increases in BMI Z-score.ConclusionsThe present study provides an important insight into different dietary and PA behaviours related to (changes in) BMI Z-score during the transition from childhood to adolescence.


Author(s):  
Nisreen M. Abdulsalam ◽  
Najla A. Khateeb ◽  
Sarah S. Aljerbi ◽  
Waad M. Alqumayzi ◽  
Shaima S. Balubaid ◽  
...  

The World Health Organization declared coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) a pandemic in March 2020. Global efforts have been made to prevent the disease from spreading through political decisions and personal behaviors, all of which rely on public awareness. The aim of our study was to examine the effect of dietary habits on weight and physical activity (PA) during the COVID-19 stay-at-home order in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. An online questionnaire was distributed using social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and WhatsApp) and email communication. A total of 472 adults (age range, 18–59 years), over half of the study population (68.0%) being females, 55.5% being between 19 and 29 years old, 15.0%—between 30 and 39 years old, and 11.2%—older than 50 years old, participated in the study. Our results indicated that the overall body weight was slightly increased among the 50+ age group (47.2%, p > 0.05), but it highly increased among the 30–39-years-old age group (32.4%, p > 0.05) as compared to before the pandemic lockdown period. Therefore, our results show that a significant difference (p < 0.05) was found for all the assessments: weight status, physical activity patterns, hours spent on screen time, homemade meals, and changes in dietary habits before and during the full COVID-19 curfew period. This study demonstrated that changes in eating habits were commonly reported among the participants who represented the full COVID-19 curfew period and that changes in eating habits and decreased physical activity led to weight gain.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (10) ◽  
pp. e0257904
Author(s):  
Shaima A. Alothman ◽  
Abdullah F. Alghannam ◽  
Alaa A. Almasud ◽  
Arwa S. Altalhi ◽  
Hazzaa M. Al-Hazzaa

Introduction COVID-19 pandemic cautionary measures have affected the daily life of people around the globe. Further, understanding the complete lifestyle behaviors profile can help healthcare providers in designing effective interventions and assessing overall health impact on risk of disease development. Thus, this study aims to assess the complete spectrum of lifestyle behaviors (physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep, distress, social support, dietary habits, and smoking) prevalence and its association with fear of COVID-19 in people living in Saudi Arabia. Methods Self-administered survey consisted of seven sections was used to collect data on fear of COVID-19 using Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), physical activity and sedentary behavior using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ), sleep quality using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), psychosocial distress using Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10), social support using the MOS social support survey, and dietary habits using a short version of food frequency questionnaire (FFQ). The online survey was distributed via social media platforms during lockdown period of COVID-19 pandemic (May–June 2020). Each section consisted of validated questionnaire examining one of aforementioned lifestyle behaviors. Associations were analyzed using multiple linear regression. Results A total of 669 individuals attempted to complete the online survey, 554 participants completed at least 2 sections of the survey (82.8%), and 41.3% (n = 276) completed the whole online survey. The majority of the sample were female (83%), not smokers (86.5%), had sufficient sleep duration (7.5 hrs ± 2.1), and only indicated mild level of distress (21.4 ± 8.9); they also reported high level of sedentary behavior (7.7 hrs ± 4.5), poor sleep quality (5.4 ± 2.4), were not engaged in healthy eating habits, and moderate level of perceived social support (62.0% ± 27). Only physical activity results indicated that about half of the sample were engaged in moderate to vigorous level of physical activity (54.3%). Further, being female (β = 0.12; 95% CI: 0.45, 2.94) and married (β = 0.13; 95% CI: 0.3, 2.63) were associated with fear of COVID-19 level (β = 0.21; 95% IC: 0.05, 0.19) with a confidence interval level of 95%. In addition, distress was associated with fear. Conclusion The trend of lifestyle behaviors measured during lockdown period changed from previously published rates. Future research needs to establish the short-term and long-term effect of lifestyle behaviors complete profile on physical and mental health.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 155798831987351 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdullah Ghurm Alshehri ◽  
Ahmed Mohamed Abdel Salam Mohamed

Physical and psychological effects of playing computer games cannot be ignored. Electronic games are considered to be an influential factor in growth, personality development, and positive sociability of children, and game duration has been associated with increased aggression, reduced mental health, and higher BMI. The aim of the present study was to explore the relationship between electronic gaming and health, social relationships, and physical activity among males aged 16–18 years in Saudi Arabia. An online survey designed by the authors containing 60 items and divided into 5 sections was used during one school semester. The sample was selected randomly from 30 high schools; 90 students were selected from each school, with 30 chosen from each of grades 9, 10, and 11. Respondents were 194 male students, aged 17.23 ± 1.52 years. The questionnaire was presented to six experts to assess validity, with Cronbach’s α established at 0.87. Results showed that playing electronic games had a negative relation with health, social relationships, and physical activity among males. The most negative significant was the correlation between electronic games and physical activity ( r = −.49), followed by that with social relationships ( r = −.42) and BMI ( r = −.31) . The lowest result was for health ( r = .20). More empirical investigations are needed to explore deeper effects of electronic gaming on various groups in Saudi society, including the general population, employees, and different categories of school and university students.


Author(s):  
German Ruiz Tendero ◽  
Juan Jose Salinero Martin ◽  
Susana Aznar Lain

This chapter reviews new quantification possibilities for the assessment of physical activity, a variable intimately related to good health. First, a variety of existing instruments are described with regard to their validity and functionality. Then, their applications are analyzed and categorized into two broad branches: sedentary lifestyle prevention and applications in special population segments. The authors’ intention is to make existing possibilities for assessment of physical activity known to researchers and public health professionals, as it is important for the achievement and promotion of active and healthy lifestyles in the population.


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