Belly Dance as a Low-Impact, Culturally Tailored Movement Modality for Adult Women’s Health and Rehabilitation: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Belly dance is usually discussed as a performing art, yet the clinical and rehabilitation literature increasingly suggests that structured dance practice can also function as a feasible health-promoting movement modality for adult women. The purpose of this narrative review is to synthesize the evidence most relevant to rehabilitation-oriented practice and to propose an applied framework for safe adult instruction. Literature indexed in PubMed and major peer reviewed sources was reviewed with emphasis on belly-dance-specific studies and high-quality systematic reviews of dance interventions in middle-aged and older adults. Evidence directly specific to belly dance is strongest in fibromyalgia and breast-cancer survivorship, where trials reported improvements in pain, functional capacity, quality of life, self-image, fatigue, depressive symptoms, body image, sexual function, and selected upper-limb outcomes. Broader dance literature supports benefits for physical function, balance, mobility, cognition, mental health, and adherence in older populations, while recent evidence also suggests potential cardiometabolic relevance, including blood-pressure improvement in dance-based programs. The available evidence does not justify exaggerated disease-treatment claims; however, it does support belly dance as a promising low-impact, culturally meaningful, and adherence friendly adjunct for adult wellness and selected rehabilitation contexts.