Associations of exercise and social support with mental health during quarantine and social-distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional survey in Germany

Abstract

<jats:p>Introduction: Social distancing and quarantine measures applied during the COVID-19 pandemic might result in mental health problems. In this cross-sectional study we examined if perceived social support, exercise in minutes per week and change in exercise are protective factors regarding symptoms of depression, anxiety, and sleeping disorders. Method: In April 2020, n = 4271 German adults completed an online survey including mental health questionnaires regarding depression (PHQ-D), anxiety (PHQ-D) and sleep (PSQI), as well as questionnaires related to protective factors such as exercise (BSA-F), physical activity-related health competence (PAHCO) and social support (F-SozU). Results: Complete case analysis (n = 3700; mean age 33.13 ± 11.73 years, 78.6 % females) resulted in elevated prevalence of depressive disorder (31.4%), panic disorder (5.7%) and other anxiety disorders (7.4%). 58.3% reported symptoms of insomnia. Three separate models of multiple regression were conducted. Perceived social support was associated with lower values of anxiety (beta = -0.10; t(19) = -6.46; p &gt;0.001), lower values of depressive symptoms (beta = -0.22; t(19) = -15.71; p &lt; .001) and lower values of sleeping disorder symptoms (beta = -0.15; t(19) = -9.55; p &lt; .001). Change towards less exercise compared to the time before Covid-19 was associated with and higher values of anxiety (beta = -0.05; t(19) = -2.85; p= .004), higher values of depressive symptoms (beta = -0.08; t(19) = -5.69; p &lt; .001), and higher values of sleeping disorder symptoms (beta = -0.07; t(19) = -4.54; p &lt; .000). Post-hoc analysis (ANOVAs) revealed that a change towards less exercise was significantly associated with more depressive, anxiety and sleeping disorder symptoms whereas a positive change was not. No significant association was found for exercise in minutes per week for all outcomes. Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have a negative impact on mental health in the German population. Social Support and a stable amount of exercise might attenuate these negative mental health consequences. Ongoing monitoring of the impact of the pandemic on mental health and possible protective factors is needed in order to create a basis for the development of appropriate prevention and intervention measures.</jats:p>

Can physical activity protect against depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic? A rapid systematic review

“…Four studies had a prospective longitudinal design [26,29,39,36], one was a cross-sectional study with a retrospective measure of the exposure factor (henceforth treated as retrospective) [5], and 16 were crosssectional studies [9, 23-25, 27, 29-35, 37, 6, 38, 40, 28, 41]. A total of 7 studies were conducted in Asia [24,25,27,30,33,39,40], 6 in Europe [9,26,31,32,35,36], 3 in South America [28,29,6], 3 in North America [23,34,5], one in Oceania [38] and one study included a multinational sample [37].…”

“…These ndings are being replicated during the Covid-19 pandemic with multiple studies reporting an increased prevalence of depression and anxiety [e.g. 5,[6][7][8][9].…”

“…However decreased levels of PA were observed in the general population in multiple countries during the pandemic [e.g. 20,21,9]. This rapid systematic review aims to outline current evidence regarding the associations of PA and exercise with depression and anxiety during the Covid-19 pandemic.…”

The social support networks of elderly people in Slovenia during the Covid-19 pandemic

“…The lack is not only limited to emotional support, but to other kinds of support like instrumental support. For example, during a 'lockdown period', some elderly people with chronic diseases might have limited access to medications, exercise, or physical therapy which could worsen their health [10,38,39]. Reports also emerged that some elderly people and disabled had cancelled their home services to minimize physical contact out of fear of the virus [40].…”

“…The latter -depression and anxiety -are common psychological reactions to the Covid-19 pandemic [10,11], therefore making social support vital in maintaining health during this period. A German study reveals that perceived social support is related to lower levels of anxiety, depressive and sleeping disorders during the coronavirus pandemic [10], while a Chinese study shows greater psychological distress among adult Chinese with less social support during the Covid-19 pandemic compared to those who have more social support [12].…”