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Do Arabic weight-loss apps adhere to evidence-informed practices?
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Alnasser, Aroub A., Amalraj, Raja E., Sathiaseelan, Arjuna, Al-Khalifa, Abdulrahman S. and Marais, Debbi (2015) Do Arabic weight-loss apps adhere to evidence-informed practices? Translational Behavioral Medicine . doi:10.1007/s13142-015-0347-7
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13142-015-0347-7
Abstract
Mobile technology has been used successfully for promoting health and weight loss and for treating obesity. There is a high prevalence of smartphone and tablet users among the Saudi population. This study aimed to identify whether current Arabic weight-loss apps had features that adhered to evidence-informed practices. The six most relevant app stores were systematically searched using the Arabic words for weight and diet (n = 298). All apps that met the inclusion criteria (n = 65) were downloaded and examined for adherence to 13 evidence-informed practices. Latent class analysis identified two subgroups of apps: self-monitoring (15 % of apps) and advice-giving apps (85 %). The median number of evidence-informed practices was 1 (1, 2), with no apps having more than six and only nine apps including four to six. Meal planning was the most common feature (38 % of apps). These findings identify serious weaknesses in the currently available Arabic weight-loss apps. Thus, existing and future apps should include more features based on the best available evidence in the context of Arab culture.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Divisions: | Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School > ( - July 2016) Health Education Hub Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Medicine > Warwick Medical School |
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| Journal or Publication Title: | Translational Behavioral Medicine | ||||
| Publisher: | Springer New York LLC | ||||
| ISSN: | 1869-6716 | ||||
| Official Date: | October 2015 | ||||
| Dates: |
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| DOI: | 10.1007/s13142-015-0347-7 | ||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
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