Measures to prevent and contain the COVID-19 health crisis include population confinement, with the consequent isolation and interruption of their usual activities. The aim of the study is to analyse psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this, a cross-sectional observational study with a sample of 4180 people over the age of 18 during quarantine was developed. Variables considered were sociodemographic variables, physical symptoms, health conditions, COVID-19 contact history and psychological adjustment. The data were collected through a self-developed questionnaire and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Bivariate analyses were performed, including Chi-Squared test and Student’s T-test. Predictive ability was calculated through logistic regression. Results obtained showed a high level of psychological distress (72.0%), with a higher percentage in women and people of lower middle age. Statistically significant differences were found in the variable working situation (χ² = 63.139, p ≤ 0.001, V = 0.123) and living with children under the age of 16 (χ² = 7.393, p = 0.007, V = 0.042). The predictive variables with the highest weight were sex (OR = 1.952, 95% IC = (1.667, 2.286)), presence of symptoms (OR = 1.130, 95% CI = (1.074, 1.190)), and having had close contact with an individual with confirmed COVID-19 (OR = 1.241, 95% CI = (1.026, 1.500)). These results could enrich prevention interventions in public health and, in particular, in mental health in similar pandemic situations.

Anxiety, depression, and stress are common and expected reactions to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The objective of this study is to analyze psychological distress in a sample of Spanish population, identifying the predictive nature of the information received, the preventive measures taken, level of concern, beliefs, and knowledge about the infection. A cross-sectional observational study was conducted on a sample of 4615 participants. Data were collected through a self-prepared questionnaire and the general health questionnaire (GHQ-12). Bivariate analyses and logistic regressions were performed. Of the total participants, 71.98% presented psychological distress. The study population actively sought information about coronavirus, expressed a high level of concern and knowledge, and the most frequent preventive behavior was hand washing. As predictive factors, the degree of concern for COVID-19 was identified (odds ratio (OR) = 1.244, 95% confidence interval (CI) = [1.179, 1.312]), the number of hours spent consulting information on COVID-19 (OR = 1.038, 95% CI = [1.009, 1.068]), or the need for psychological support (OR = 1.135, 95% CI = [1.094, 1.177]), among others. These results could help design more effective strategies towards a psycho-emotional approach for the population when in similar health crisis situations. There is a need for interventions aimed at the psychological well-being of the population that meet the needs of their reality.

The aim of this study was to analyze the main leisure habits of students at the University of Huelva and the relationship with perceived health by grouping the various activities into components whilst also evaluating possible gender differences. The sample was selected through random cluster sampling and was composed of 903 students from various courses and degrees. Of the sample, 73.8% were female and 26.2% were male, with a mean age of 20.82 years. The participants responded to items measuring perceived health and the inventory of leisure activities extracted from the INJUVE (Spanish Youth Observatory) survey. The results obtained offered a solution of four components, grouping the activities into passive leisure, festive leisure, sports–competitive leisure and cultural leisure. Passive leisure was the most practiced and cultural leisure the least practiced. Statistically significant differences were observed between men and women in terms of the sports–competitive component and in the perception of health. In addition, a direct relationship was found between the sports–competitive dimension and health perception. These results support the existence of a “techno-active” profile in males and should be considered in the creation of university policies linked to health promotion or the prevention of risk behaviors.

This study aims to identify the relationships between eating habits and psychological adjustment and health perception, and to analyze potential mediating role of healthy and unhealthy foods in the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet) and the psychological constructs and health perception. The sample was selected through stratified random cluster sampling and was composed of 788 university students. The participants responded to a MedDiet adherence screener and food consumption inventory to assess the eating habits, instruments measuring self-esteem, life satisfaction, curiosity and sense of coherence to assess the psychological adjustment, and single item measuring perceived health. The results revealed 41.9% of the participants had a high consumption of vegetables and 85.1% a low consumption of energy drinks, while 29.9% showed a high adherence to the MedDiet which was positively associated to each psychological variable and healthy foods and negatively with unhealthy foods. In conclusion, a higher adherence to the MedDiet, and the consumption of fruits and vegetables is related to higher psychological adjustment and health perception. However, the relationships between MedDiet and the psychological variables and health perception were fully or partially explained because of the consumption of healthy and unhealthy foods.

Introduction: The global health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which started at the beginning of 2020, has had a negative impact on mental health (MH). As a response to the pandemic, international agencies and governmental institutions providedan initial response to the population’s needs. As the pandemic evolved, the population circumstances changed, and some of these international agencies, such as the UN or WHO, updated their strategies, recommendations, and guidelines for the populations. However, there is currently a lack of information on the attention given to response strategies by the different countries throughout the beginning of the pandemic. Objectives: To evaluate the evolution of MH online strategies and recommendations developed by governments and related institutions to cope with the impact ofCOVID-19 on MH from the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic to the vaccination period and to assess their current status. Methodology: An adaptation of the PRISMA guidelines to review online documents was used together with a questionnaire for MH strategies and recommendation assessment. Basic statistics and Student’s t test were used to assess the evolution of the documents, while a two-step cluster analysis was performed to assess the organisation and characteristics of the most recent documents. Results: Statistically significant differences were found both in the number of symptoms and mental disorders and MH strategies and recommendations included in the initial documents and the updated versions generated after vaccines became available. The most recent versionsare more complete in all cases. Regarding the forty-six total documents included in the review, the cluster analysis showed a broaddistribution from wide-spectrum documents to documentsfocusing on a specific topic. Conclusions: Governments and institutions have worked actively but unevenly on updating the MH guidelines, paying attention to actions related to bereavement, telehealth and domestic violence. Significant improvements have been made regarding Mexico’s guideline and the availability of comprehensive resources from England, Australia and the United States of America. The study supports the use of the PRISMA protocol adaptation and questionnaire for MH strategy and recommendation assessments as a standard by which to conduct longitudinal assessments of dynamic documents.