<p>Moving More and Sitting Less as Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors are Protective Factors for Insomnia, Depression, and Anxiety Among Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic</p>

Abstract

Purpose This study aimed to investigate associations of physical activity time (PAT) and sitting time (ST) independently and jointly with insomnia, depressive and anxiety symptoms among Chinese adolescents in the context of COVID-19. Methods A cross-sectional study including 965 adolescents (mean age = 15.26, SD = 0.46) was conducted in May 2020. PAT, ST and the symptoms of insomnia, depression and anxiety were assessed with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form, the Youth Self-Rating Insomnia Scales, the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale via an online survey platform. Logistic regression was used to analyze the association between COVID-19-related fear, PAT, ST and combinations of PAT and ST with insomnia, depressive and anxiety symptoms. Results COVID-19-related fear was associated with higher odds of insomnia, depressive and anxiety symptoms. PAT was associated with lower odds of insomnia and depressive symptoms, while ST was associated with higher odds of these three symptoms. After combining PAT and ST, the group with both low PAT and high ST was set as the referent. For insomnia, groups with low ST reported significantly lower odds of symptoms. For depression, groups with high PAT and/or low ST reported lower odds of symptoms. Regarding anxiety, only the group with both high PAT and low ST reported lower odds of symptoms. Generally, group with both high PAT and low ST reported lower odds of the three symptoms than the referent. Conclusion COVID-19-related fear was a risk factor for developing insomnia, depressive and anxiety symptoms among Chinese adolescents. Fortunately, moving more and sitting less were good for sleep and mental health in Chinese adolescents during the pandemic. Educators should help adolescents to be more physically active in their daily life in the primary prevention of adolescent insomnia, depression and anxiety.

Physical Activity, Sedentariness, Eating Behaviour and Well-Being during a COVID-19 Lockdown Period in Greek Adolescents

“…This is an unsurprising finding because sedentary time has been repeatedly associated with deteriorated well-being components (e.g., depression) in large-scale epidemiological studies across adolescents [ 7 , 8 ] and adult populations [ 3 ]. Moreover, adolescents living in COVID-19 lockdowns have demonstrated increased sedentariness and low well-being [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]; sitting time in particular has dramatically increased [ 36 ] and clearly related with deteriorated well-being components including sleeping patterns and depressive and anxiety symptoms [ 43 ]. Tackling sedentary time in Greek adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic and involved lockdowns should thus be prioritized to decrease sitting time modalities such as the widespread screen time.…”

Lifestyle changes and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: A repeated, cross-sectional web survey

“…Several observational studies have consistently shown that the relationship between lifestyles and mental health is bidirectional in nature ( Firth et al., 2019 , 2020a ). During the COVID-19 pandemic, research has mostly focused on the role of lifestyle behaviors as either risk or protective factors for common mental health symptoms and disorders ( Bendau et al., 2021 ; Cellini et al., 2020 ; Fullana et al., 2020 ; Lu et al., 2020 ; Novotný et al., 2020 ; Pham et al., 2020 ; Santabárbara et al., 2020 ; Stanton et al., 2020 ). Growing evidence supports that diet ( Fullana et al., 2020 ; Pham et al., 2020 ), physical activity ( Lu et al., 2020 ), and other lifestyle behaviors ( Cellini et al., 2020 ; Santabárbara et al., 2020 ; Stanton et al., 2020 ) are significant predictors of anxiety and/or depression.…”

Few Canadian children and youth were meeting the 24-hour movement behaviour guidelines 6-months into the COVID-19 pandemic: Follow-up from a national study

“…For example, early data indicates that COVID-19 related closures, cancellations, and restrictions are associated with decreased cardiovascular tness (Dayton et al, 2021) and increased rates of obesity (Rundle et al, 2020) in children and youth. Reduced time spent in physical activity and increased time on screens during the COVID-19 pandemic have also been associated with greater risk of anxiety and depressive symptoms (Alves et al, 2021), and insomnia in children and youth (Lu et al, 2020). With most children and youth engaging in too much sedentary behaviour and screen time, and too little physical activity and sleep during the pandemic, it is speculated that this global health crisis could lead to future health consequences for this young generation.…”