Assessing adolescent diet and physical activity behaviour, knowledge and awareness in low- and middle-income countries: a systematised review of quantitative epidemiological tools

Trish Muzenda; Monika Kamkuemah; Jane Battersby; Tolu Oni

doi:10.1186/s12889-022-13160-6

Assessing adolescent diet and physical activity behaviour, knowledge and awareness in low- and middle-income countries: a systematised review of quantitative epidemiological tools

BMC Public Health. 2022 May 14;22(1):975. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-13160-6.

Authors

Trish Muzenda^{1

2}, Monika Kamkuemah³, Jane Battersby⁴, Tolu Oni^{5

3}

Affiliations

¹ Global Diet and Physical Activity Research, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK. trish.muzenda@mrc-epid.cam.ac.uk.
² Research Initiative for Cities Health and Equity (RICHE), Division of Public Health Medicine, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, 7925, South Africa. trish.muzenda@mrc-epid.cam.ac.uk.
³ Research Initiative for Cities Health and Equity (RICHE), Division of Public Health Medicine, School of Public Health and Family Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, 7925, South Africa.
⁴ African Centre for Cities, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, 7945, South Africa.
⁵ Global Diet and Physical Activity Research, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK.

Abstract

Purpose: Quantitative epidemiological tools are routinely used to assess adolescent diet and physical activity (PA) constructs (behaviour, knowledge, and awareness) as risk factors for non-communicable diseases. This study sought to synthesize evidence on the quantitative epidemiological tools that have been used to assess adolescent diet and PA constructs in low to middle-income countries (LMIC).

Methods: A systematised review was conducted using 3 databases (EbscoHost, Scopus and Web of Science).

Results: We identified 292 LMIC studies assessing adolescent diet and PA. Identified studies predominantly explored behavioural (90%) constructs with a paucity of studies investigating knowledge and awareness. The majority of studies used subjective (94%) and self-administered (78%) tools. Only 39% of LMIC studies used tools validated for their contexts.

Conclusions: The findings highlight the need for more contextual tools for assessing adolescent diet and PA in LMICs. Diet and PA measurement tools used in future research will need to incorporate measures of knowledge and awareness for a more comprehensive understanding of the epidemiology of diet and PA in adolescents. Furthermore, there is a need for more evidence on the reliability and validity of these tools for use, in both cross sectional and longitudinal studies, in LMIC contexts.

Keywords: Adolescent; Assessment; Diet; Epidemiological tools, low- and middle-income countries; LMIC; Physical activity.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Cross-Sectional Studies
Developing Countries*
Diet
Exercise*
Humans
Reproducibility of Results

Grants and funding

DH_/Department of Health/United Kingdom