Physical activity, emotional eating, screen-based sedentary behavior, and physical and mental health in chinese university students: a cross-sectional study.

Minghuan Tang, Xuelin Yang

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Minghuan TangPostdoctoral Research Center of Physical Education, Chengdu Sport University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China.

Xuelin YangSchool of Physical Education, Beibu Gulf University, Qinzhou, 535011, Guangxi, China. yxl@bbgu.edu.cn.

Funding

Project of National Social Science Foundation of China for the Year 2023: Research on the Effective Utilization of Red Sports Cultural Resources in the Revolutionary Old Areas of the Left and Right Rivers NO.23CTY016

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the relationships between screen-based sedentary behavior, emotional eating, physical activity, and physical and mental health of university students. A structured questionnaire survey was randomly administered to 1800 university students from three universities in Southwestern China. The survey collected self-reported data using the Screen Time Scale, Physical Activity Rating Scale-3, Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire-Emotional Eating subscale, and Global Physical and Mental Health Scale. SPSS 26.0 was used to analyze the relationships among these factors and physical and mental health. The results showed that screen-based sedentary behavior was significantly negatively associated with physical and mental health (β = -0.282, p < 0.001). Emotional eating was significantly associated with the relationship between screen-based sedentary behavior and physical and mental health, with the indirect effect accounting for 39.296% of the total effect. Additionally, physical activity moderated this relationship (β = 0.002, p < 0.01). These findings highlight the significant association between physical activity, a healthy lifestyle, and university students' overall well-being, offering new insights for both theoretical research and practical interventions.

Indexed as

Emotional EatingExerciseMental HealthScreen TimeSedentary BehaviorStudentsAdolescentAdultChinaCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMaleSurveys and QuestionnairesUniversitiesYoung AdultEmotional eatingGender differencePhysical activityPhysical and mental healthScreen-based sedentary behavior

Identifiers

PMID42129494

DOI10.1038/s41598-026-52980-z

PMCPMC13365545

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY-NC-ND

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.