Prevalence of Eating Disorders and Disordered Eating Behaviours amongst Adolescents and Young Adults in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review

Exercise and mind-body exercise for feeding and eating disorders: a systematic review with meta-analysis and meta-regressions

PURPOSE

To develop a systematic review with meta-analysis to summarize the effectiveness of exercise, regular physical activity, and mind-body exercise on harmful exercise habits, psychological factors, and quality of life in people clinically diagnosed with feeding and eating disorders.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Randomized clinical trials and pilot randomized clinical trials were considered.

RESULTS

Twelve studies were included. No studies evaluated athletes. No studies examined regular physical activity as the targeted intervention. Quality of life could not be meta-analyzed. Overall, meta-analyses showed that exercise or mind-body exercise was not more effective than controls in reducing depression symptoms, harmful exercise habits, eating behaviors, or emotional regulation skills. However, important methodological and clinical issues were detected in the included studies. This affected the certainty of evidence of the meta-analyzed outcomes which ranged from low to very low. No studies reported in sufficient detail their interventions to be replicated.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, exercise and mind-body exercise may be ineffective in improving meta-analyzed outcomes. However, the certainty of evidence ranged from low to very low and the body of knowledge in this field needs to be increased to reach robust conclusions.

The Prevalence of Disordered Eating Behaviours (DEBs) among Adolescent Female School Students in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

Adolescence is a sensitive stage of life that is particularly vulnerable to nutritional problems, including DEBs. This cross-sectional study aims to explore the prevalence of DEBs among adolescent female school students in four intermediate and secondary schools in the city of Riyadh and to examine predictors associated with DEBs, including age, BMI and school regions. A total of 416 female students aged 12-19 years took part in this study. Weight and height were measured for students before the EAT-26 test was completed. Overweight and obesity were observed among 37.7% (n = 157) of students, 50.7% (n = 211) had a normal BMI and 11.5% (n = 48) were underweight. Results indicated that 123 (29.6%) students reported an EAT-26 score of 20 or more, indicating a high risk of DEB. Age was a significant predictor of DEB risk (OR = 3.087, 95% CI = 1.228-7.760), with the older age group (16-19 years) reporting a higher risk than the younger age group (12-15 years) (p = 0.017). DEB risk partially differed by school region, but BMI was not a statistically significant predictor. The high-risk group reported more binging (p = 0.008), induced vomiting (p < 0.001), laxative consumption (p < 0.001) and exercising (p < 0.001) compared with the low-risk group. Further research is warranted to understand DEB current patterns and predictors.