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Background: Improving neighborhood walkability is critical for sustainable and livable urban development and is associated with increased physical activity. The Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale-Abbreviated (NEWS-A) is a tool for assessing neighborhood walkability among adults. Currently, no Arabic version is available for this important walkability scale. Objective: To translate the NEWS-A to Arabic, culturally adapt, and pre-test it for adults. Methods: The NEWS-A was translated and culturally adapted using Crosscultural Survey Guidelines and then pre-tested using 65 households selected randomly from the neighborhoods of three districts in Riyadh. After answering the survey, 55 participants took part in a semi-structured cognitive interview, which sought their understanding of the words in the Arabic questionnaire, the clarity of each item, and their suggestions for improvement. Results: Translation and adaptation of NEWS-A to Arabic resulted in adding two items (mosque and healthcare center) to section B of the scale (stores, facilities, and other things in your neighborhood) and one related item to section C (access to services). The total individual items became 57 instead of the original 54 items in the English version. Also, we added "ATM machine" to item 14 (Bank/credit union) in section B. In addition, the overall results of the cognitive interview showed that most of the participants understood the intended meaning of the questionnaire (99.5%). Further, 99.8% of the respondents stated that the items were not difficult to comprehend, while 100% of the sample indicated that the sentences were comfortable and not sensitive to them. Conclusion: Translating, adapting, and pre-testing the NEWS-A resulted in retaining all the original items and adding three additional items. The Arabic NEWS-A provides an important tool for future research on neighborhood environment walkability among adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Saudi Arabia is experiencing rapid development of the built environment and implementing policy changes to promote physical activity (PA) and reduce sedentary behavior (SB) among its population. In light of these developments, this scoping review systematically summarized population levels of PA/SB in Saudi Arabia. Methods: The authors searched 6 databases on December 13, 2021, for articles published in English or Arabic from 2018 to the search date. Studies using population-based sampling in Saudi Arabia and measuring PA/SB were included. Results: Of the 1272 records found, 797 were screened, and 19 studies (9 on children/adolescents age 6–19 y and 10 on adults age 15–75 y) were included. All studies were cross-sectional in design, and 18 studies collected data at only one point in time, ranging from 2009 to 2020. A total of 18 studies relied on self-reporting to assess PA/SB using a variety of questionnaires. Among children/adolescents, approximately 80% to 90% did not attain at least 60 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous PA and 50% to 80% engaged in ≥2 hours per day of screen time or SB. Among adults, approximately 50% to 95% had low or insufficient PA (eg, less than meeting PA guidelines) and about half had a sitting time of ≥5 hours per day. Population-based studies were not found among children <10 years and adults >75 years. Conclusions: A high proportion of participants in the reviewed studies did not meet PA recommendations and spent excessive time in SB. Ongoing surveillance efforts for all ages may help identify target populations for interventions and prioritize the national strategy on PA/SB in Saudi Arabia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]