Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for Mental Health

Pfefferbaum, Betty; Horn, Richard L. Van

doi:10.1007/s11920-022-01366-9

Cited by 16 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Notably, the height and weight data reported in W2 were from parental reports, which may introduce recall bias in our study. Second, the association between decreased exercise time and higher risk of anxiety symptoms highlights the importance of physical activity in mental health [12,49], but its increase did not show protective effect, which differed from other studies [50,51]. Third, the decreased electronic time also showed an association with increased depression and anxiety symptoms, which was different from some studies.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 59%

Life changes and mental health among Chinese children and adolescents during the pandemic: a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal and clustering studies

Zeng,

Song,

Zhang

et al. 2024

Preprint

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The measures to prevent COVID-19 pandemic had caused significant life changes, which could be distressing for mental health among children and adolescents. We aimed to evaluate the short- and long-term effects of life changes on children’s mental health in a large Chinese cohort. Survey-based life changes during COVID-19 lockdown were measured among 7,829 Chinese students at Grade 1–9, including social contacts, lifestyles and family financial status. Clustering analysis was applied to identify potential patterns of these changes. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale and Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the associations between these changes, their patterns and the presence of depression/anxiety symptoms using both cross-sectional and longitudinal designs. We found that the prevalence of depression and anxiety symptoms decreased during pandemic (34.6–32.6%). However, during and shortly after lockdown, students who reported negative impacts on their study, social and outside activities and diet, and decreased electronic time and sugar-sweetened consumption, as well as family income decline and unemployment had increased risks of depressive/anxiety symptoms, and students with changed sleep time had increased depressive symptoms. These associations attenuated or disappeared one year later. Similar patterns were observed in clustering analysis, while only the group with severe impact on family financial status showed a sustained increase in depression symptoms. In summary, restrictive measures that changed children and adolescents’ daily life during COVID-19 lockdown showed negative effects on their mental health, with some commonalities and distinctions patterns in the manifestation of depression and anxiety symptoms.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 59%

Life changes and mental health among Chinese children and adolescents during the pandemic: a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal and clustering studies

Zeng,

Song,

Zhang

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Also, movement restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic may have influenced the daily physical activity habits of participants, thereby not truly reflecting the ‘normal’ activity engagement. Canada ( Colley and Watt, 2022 ), United States ( Pfefferbaum and Van Horn, 2022 ), and Slovenia ( Morrison et al, 2021 ) have each reported reduced physical activity habits among children throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. We must therefore stress that the preliminary duration of physical activity reported in this study should be confirmed with objectively-measured physical activity tools in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

24-h movement behaviour, thermal perception, thirst, and heat management strategies of children and adults during heat alerts: a pilot study

2023

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Background: Heat waves caused by climate change are increasingly challenging the wellbeing of individuals across the lifespan. Current efforts to understand the thermal perceptions and behaviours of people throughout the lifespan during heat waves are limited.Methods: Since June 2021, the Active Heatwave project has been recruiting households to better understand how individuals perceive, cope, and behave during heat waves. Using our novel web platform, participants were prompted to answer our Heat Alert Survey on days when a participants geolocation corresponded to a broadcasted local heat alert. Participants provided 24-h movement behaviour, thirst, thermal perception, and cooling strategies via validated questionnaires.Results: A total of 285 participants (118 children) from 60 distinct weather station locations globally participated between June and September 2021 and 2022. At least 1 heat alert (834 total) were identified from 95% (57/60) of the weather stations. Children reported spending more time performing vigorous intensity exercise compared to adults (p < 0.05), but no differences in thermal sensation, thermal comfort, or thirst sensation (all p > 0.31) were observed. For thirst management, 88% of respondents used water to relieve thirst, although notably, 15% of adults reported using alcohol. Regardless of age, staying indoors was the most common heat management strategy, whereas visiting cooling centres was the least.Conclusion: The present study presents a proof-of-concept combining local heat alert notifications with e-questionnaires for collecting near-real-time perceptual and behavioural data for both children and adults during heat waves. The observed patterns of behaviour suggest that present public heat-health guidelines are often ignored, children engage in fewer heat management strategies compared to adults, and these disparities highlight the need to improve public health communication and knowledge dissemination around promoting effective and accessible cooling solutions for children and adults.

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“…Recent research [ 7 , 8 ] suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic may exacerbate physical inactivity and prolong sedentary time in children, which may be attributed to the lack of equal opportunities to participate in PA and the unavailability of sports facilities caused by school closures. It has been shown that students have lower levels of PA and more sedentary time during the weekends than in school [ 9 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physical Activity, Mental Health, and Quality of Life among School Students in the Jazan Region of Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Survey When Returning to School after the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2023

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Increasing evidence suggests that physical activity (PA) can reduce depression and anxiety in adolescents. At the same time, quality of life (QoL) is sensitive to both mental health and PA, but little is known about the mechanism between these three variables among adolescents. This study aimed to assess the physical activity, mental health, and quality of life of school students when they returned to school after two years of distance learning in the Jazan region. This current investigation represented an observational cross-sectional survey conducted in January 2022 among a random sample of 601 students from intermediate and high schools in the Jazan region, Saudi Arabia. Three standardized questionnaires were used for data collection; the Arabic version of the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS21), and the Fels PAQ for children. The analysis revealed a moderate level of physical activity, decreased HRQoL, and symptoms of mental health problems (anxiety, depression, and stress) among the schools’ students when they returned to school following COVID-19 lockdown. The overall Pediatric Quality of Life mean score was (81.4 ± 16.4), which differed significantly according to gender, age groups, and grade levels (p < 0.05 for all). There was a negative correlation between the overall quality of life and mental health domains. Sport was negatively correlated with mental illness symptoms and positively correlated (p < 0.05) with Pediatric Quality of Life. The regression models revealed that stress was a significant predictor for the quality of life of male and female adolescents ([β = −0.30, (95% CI (−0.59) to (−0.02), p < 0.05)] and [β = −0.40, (95% CI (−0.70) to (−0.01), p < 0.05)], respectively). The analysis revealed a moderate level of physical activity among the schools’ students when they returned to school following COVID-19 lockdown. Children’s involvement in physical activity was associated with improved quality of life and mental health. The results call for the need to develop appropriate intervention programs to increase school students’ physical activity levels.

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Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior in Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Implications for Mental Health

Cited by 16 publications

References 55 publications

Life changes and mental health among Chinese children and adolescents during the pandemic: a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal and clustering studies

Life changes and mental health among Chinese children and adolescents during the pandemic: a combination of cross-sectional, longitudinal and clustering studies

24-h movement behaviour, thermal perception, thirst, and heat management strategies of children and adults during heat alerts: a pilot study

Physical Activity, Mental Health, and Quality of Life among School Students in the Jazan Region of Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Survey When Returning to School after the COVID-19 Pandemic

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