Protective effects of physical activity on mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has been linked with increased reports of depression, anxiety, and stress. Stay-at-home directives during the pandemic-imposed lifestyle changes, including eating and sedentary behaviors that can further undermine mental health outcomes. Physical activity is a vital component f...

Full description

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Published in:	PloS one Vol. 17; no. 12; p. e0279468
Main Authors:	Koziel Ly, Nikita K, Mohamud, Ladan, Villeneuve, Paul J, Matheson, Kimberly, Anisman, Hymie, Chee, Melissa J
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States Public Library of Science 30-12-2022 Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects:	Adult Analysis Anxiety Anxiety - epidemiology Biology and Life Sciences Body mass index Care and treatment Coping Coronaviruses COVID-19 COVID-19 - epidemiology Depression - epidemiology Depression, Mental Education Employment Exercise Family income Health Health aspects Humans Leisure Living arrangements Longitudinal Studies Mediation Medicine and Health Sciences Mental depression Mental health Outcome Assessment, Health Care Pandemics Physical activity Physical fitness Psychological aspects Research and Analysis Methods Secondary schools Social networks Social Sciences Stress Stress (Psychology) Stress management Canada United States > US
Online Access:	Get full text
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

Description
Summary:	The COVID-19 pandemic has been linked with increased reports of depression, anxiety, and stress. Stay-at-home directives during the pandemic-imposed lifestyle changes, including eating and sedentary behaviors that can further undermine mental health outcomes. Physical activity is a vital component for metabolic health, as well as for mental health by serving as an active coping strategy to manage stress and promote resilience. Global reports of increased sedentary leisure behaviors have been associated with feelings of depression and anxiety, but it unclear whether the relationship between physical activity and depression or anxiety persists over time. In this longitudinal study, we investigated (i) whether physical activity at the onset of the pandemic was related to feelings of depression or anxiety over time and (ii) whether this relationship was mediated by stress appraisals during the pandemic. We surveyed 319 adults living in Canada or the United States to assess physical activity, stress appraisals, and mental health outcomes at two time points over a 6-month period. We found a reduction in leisure-time physical activity that was linked to subsequent feelings of depression. Furthermore, individuals with lower levels of physical activity were more likely to appraise their COVID-19 situation to be uncontrollable at pandemic onset and as the pandemic continued. Stress appraisals of threat and uncontrollability were also positively related to feelings of depression. Modelling these three factors together showed that appraising a situation as uncontrollable mediated the relationship between initial physical activity and subsequent depressive feelings. Although correlational, these data highlight the protective role of leisure-time physical activity against worsened mental health outcomes during periods of prolonged stress.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
ISSN:	1932-6203 1932-6203
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pone.0279468