title: Do Arabic weight-loss apps adhere to evidence-informed practices?
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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Nutrition, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. aroub@ksu.edu.sa.|Division of Applied Health Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK. aroub@ksu.edu.sa.
authors.forename: Aroub A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Alnasser
authors.affiliation: Division of Applied Health Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
authors.forename: Raja E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Amalraj
authors.affiliation: Computer Laboratory, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
authors.forename: Arjuna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sathiaseelan
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Nutrition, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Abdulrahman S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Al-Khalifa
authors.affiliation: Division of Applied Health Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
authors.forename: Debbi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marais
mesh_terms: D055317:Evidence-Based Practice / Q000592:standards*; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D063731:Mobile Applications / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009765:Obesity / Q000178:diet therapy; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D000068997:Smartphone; D061217:Weight Reduction Programs / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Apps; Arabic; Smartphones; Tablets; Weight loss; Weight reduction programs