Evidence Map of Cochrane Reviews on Nutrition and Physical Activity in Healthy and At-Risk Populations: A Scoping Review

Cochrane reviews provide high-quality evidence syntheses. To guide the production and dissemination of new Cochrane reviews, an evidence map based on the characteristics of existing reviews is necessary. This study is a scoping review that aimed to create an evidence map of Cochrane reviews on nutrition and physical activity (PA) in healthy and at-risk populations, describe stakeholder involvement in review production and assess the dissemination of these reviews. This scoping review follows a registered protocol and adheres to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA ScR) guideline. Eligible studies were Cochrane reviews on nutrition and PA for healthy and at-risk populations that were identified in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews through to 22 January 2026 and selected independently by two researchers from 2043 search hits. Extracted data included bibliographic, population, and intervention or concept characteristics, information on stakeholder involvement in review production and open-access Altmetric data on the online and scientific attention towards Cochrane reviews. Data were processed into meaningful categories and synthesised using descriptive statistics. The included Cochrane reviews (n = 260) were published between 1999 and 2026. Review focus was on nutrition (n = 193, 74%), PA (n = 39, 15%), and nutrition + PA (n = 28, 11%). Most reviews included any populations by age and sex (n = 52, 20%) or specific populations by age (adults: n = 62, 24%; children: n = 54, 21%; and child-caregiver dyads: n = 50, 19%). The interventions or concepts were predominantly non-digital (n = 230, 88%), included mainly nutrition components (e.g. supplementation: n = 104, 40%; diet: n = 68, 26%), and were conducted in any unspecified settings (e.g. community, population; n = 226, 87%). The outcomes were mainly disease-related (e.g. disease prevention and risk factor reduction; n = 129, 50%) and reproductive (e.g. maternal and child health promotion; n = 56, 22%). There were less or no reviews with the following characteristics: (1) populations of older adults and males, (2) interventions or concepts with digital modality and with components targeting PA promotion, behaviour change, and other factors (e.g. policy), (3) specific settings (e.g. vulnerable, organisational), (4) outcomes targeting general health promotion and psychosocial (e.g. behavioural, cognitive, and mental) functioning. Involvement of various stakeholders (e.g. consumers, clinicians, and advisory boards) was reported in the production of 32% of Cochrane reviews. Online attention was highest for reviews with nutrition components (i.e. supplementation and diet) while scientific attention was highest for reviews with mixed components (i.e. PA and supplementation). New Cochrane reviews on nutrition and PA need to target specific populations (especially older adults and males) and settings, assess digital interventions or concepts, and focus on components and outcomes targeting physical and mental health promotion. Stakeholder involvement in review production and online and scientific attention could be further promoted to potentially improve review uptake in practice.