A methodological study revisiting obesity and lifestyle behaviors of Jordanian adolescents in Amman after 14 years.

Lifestyle factors are associated with many adverse health outcomes. Adolescence represents a critical developmental period during which individual lifestyle behaviors are established. Regularly monitoring lifestyle behaviors, including physical activity (PA), sleep, dietary habits, and sedentary time, during adolescence is important. In 2011, a school-based study conducted in several major Arab cities including Amman, Jordan. The main findings indicated a considerable proportion of adolescents had unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and correlated with overweight/obesity. The present research aims to revisit the obesity levels, lifestyle behaviors and dietary habits of Jordanian adolescents (N = 1320) in Amman and examine the changing trend of these lifestyle behaviors after 14 years from the previous study. Weight, height, waist circumference, grip strength, psychological well-being will be measured. PA, sedentary behaviors, sleep, and dietary habits will be assessed using ATLS and ASBQ questionnaires. Making comparison between the past and the current studies provide evidence on the changes among Jordanian adolescents' lifestyle behaviors over the course of more than a decade. The findings of this study will provide valuable data on overweight/obesity status and lifestyle behaviors of Jordanian youth. Such information can be used for planning and implementing health promotion programs for adolescents intended to reduce obesity and improve lifestyle behaviors.