scholarly journals Effects of Reallocating Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviors, and Sleep on Mental Health: A Cross-Sectional Examination of Canadian Adolescents in the COMPASS Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenna Gilchrist ◽  
Kate Battista ◽  
Karen A. Patte ◽  
Guy Faulkner ◽  
Valerie Carson ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep are associated with mental health in adolescents. Mental health may depend not only on the amount of time spent in a specific activity, but also on the activity it displaces. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of reallocating 15 minutes of time spent in one health behavior with 15 minutes in another on adolescent mental health. Methods: Cross-sectional data from the students participating in the COMPASS Study (2018-2019) were analyzed (N = 46,413). Participants self-reported the amount of time they spent engaged in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), doing homework and using screens, and their sleep duration on average each day. Participants also self-reported depressive symptoms, anxiety, and flourishing. Data were analyzed using isotemporal substitution modeling. Results: Non-linear associations were evident between sleep and the mental health outcomes, so analyses were stratified by sleep duration based on whether students reported meeting current guidelines or not. Among adolescents getting less than the recommended amount of sleep, replacing any behaviour with sleep was generally associated with better mental health outcomes. Conversely, among adolescents getting adequate sleep, the findings did not support replacing other behaviors with sleep with the exception of screen time. Replacing homework and MVPA with sleep was associated with less flourishing regardless of sleep duration. Of the two sedentary behaviors assessed, replacing screen time with homework was associated with less depression and greater flourishing. However, replacing any behavior with homework was associated with greater anxiety regardless of whether participants reported adequate sleep or not.Conclusions: Replacing screen time with any behaviour may be better for mental health outcomes. Results provide further support for the critical role of sleep in promoting healthy development during adolescence, though more sleep than is recommended may confer little benefit for mental health. Youth getting adequate sleep may benefit from replacing screen time with homework or MVPA. The findings demonstrate that mental health benefits may be obtainable at intervals as short as 15 minutes.

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (23-24) ◽  
pp. 5997-6016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah J. Rinehart ◽  
Dorothy L. Espelage ◽  
Kristen L. Bub

Gendered harassment, including sexual harassment and homophobic name-calling, is prevalent in adolescents and is linked to negative outcomes including depression, anxiety, suicidality, substance abuse, and personal distress. However, much of the extant literature is cross-sectional and rarely are perpetrators of these behaviors included in studies of outcomes. Therefore, the current study examined the effects of longitudinal changes in gendered harassment perpetration and victimization on changes in mental health outcomes among a large sample of early adolescents. Given that these behaviors commonly occur in the context of a patriarchal society (males hold power), we also investigated the impact of gender on gendered harassment. Participants included 3,549 students from four Midwestern middle schools (50.4% female, 49% African American, 34% White) at two time points (13 and 17 years old). Results indicated that increases from age 13 to 17 years in sexual harassment perpetration and victimization and homophobic name-calling perpetration and victimization predicted increases in depression symptoms and substance use. Gender did not moderate these pathways. These findings highlight that negative outcomes are associated with changes in gendered harassment among adolescents and emphasize the importance of prevention efforts. Implications for school interventions are discussed.


Author(s):  
Jacob Meyer ◽  
Cillian McDowell ◽  
Jeni Lansing ◽  
Cassandra Brower ◽  
Lee Smith ◽  
...  

The COVID-19 pandemic altered many facets of life. We aimed to evaluate the impact of COVID-19-related public health guidelines on physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, mental health, and their interrelations. Cross-sectional data were collected from 3052 US adults 3–8 April 2020 (from all 50 states). Participants self-reported pre- and post-COVID-19 levels of moderate and vigorous PA, sitting, and screen time. Currently-followed public health guidelines, stress, loneliness, positive mental health (PMH), social connectedness, and depressive and anxiety symptoms were self-reported. Participants were grouped by meeting US PA guidelines, reporting ≥8 h/day of sitting, or ≥8 h/day of screen time, pre- and post-COVID-19. Overall, 62% of participants were female, with age ranging from 18–24 (16.6% of sample) to 75+ (9.3%). Self-reported PA was lower post-COVID among participants reporting being previously active (mean change: −32.3% [95% CI: −36.3%, −28.1%]) but largely unchanged among previously inactive participants (+2.3% [−3.5%, +8.1%]). No longer meeting PA guidelines and increased screen time were associated with worse depression, loneliness, stress, and PMH (p < 0.001). Self-isolation/quarantine was associated with higher depressive and anxiety symptoms compared to social distancing (p < 0.001). Maintaining and enhancing physical activity participation and limiting screen time increases during abrupt societal changes may mitigate the mental health consequences.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. e0248684
Author(s):  
Hridaya Raj Devkota ◽  
Tula Ram Sijali ◽  
Ramji Bogati ◽  
Meraj Ahmad ◽  
Karuna Laxmi Shakya ◽  
...  

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has been creating a panic and distressing situations among the entire population globally including Nepal. No study has been conducted assessing the psychological impact of this pandemic on the general public in Nepal. The objective of this study is to assess the mental health status during COVID-19 outbreak and explore the potential influencing factors among the population attending the hospital fever clinics with COVID–19 symptoms. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted between May—June, 2020 with a sample of 645 participants aged 18 and above in 26 hospitals across Nepal. Telephone interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire along with a validated psychometric tool, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress (DASS-21) scale. The metrics and scores of symptoms and their severity were created and analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of potential covariates with outcome variables. Results The prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress were 14%, 7% and 5% respectively. In reference to Karnali, participants from Bagmati province reported higher level of anxiety (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.31–9.06), while stress (OR 4.27, 95% CI 1.09–18.32) and depressive symptoms (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.05–9.23) observed higher among the participants in Province 1. Women were more at risk of anxiety (OR 3.41, 95% CI 1.83–6.36) than men. Similarly, people currently living in rented houses reported more stress (OR 2.97, 95% CI 1.05–8.43) and those living far from family reported higher rates of depressive symptoms (OR 3.44, 95% CI 1.03–11.46). Conclusion The study identified increased prevalence of stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms during the initial stage of COVID-19 pandemic in Nepal. Considering the findings, there is urgent need to develop and implement appropriate community-based mental health programs targeting individuals who have had COVID-19 symptoms and who are prone to develop adverse mental health outcomes.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Groarke ◽  
Emma Berry ◽  
Lisa Graham-Wisener ◽  
Phoebe McKenna-Plumley ◽  
Emily McGlinchey ◽  
...  

Objectives: Loneliness is a significant public health issue. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in lockdown measures limiting social contact. The UK public are worried about the impact of these measures on mental health outcomes. Understanding the prevalence and predictors of loneliness at this time is a priority issue for research. Design: The study employed a cross-sectional online survey design. Method: Baseline data collected between March 23rd and April 24th 2020 from UK adults in the COVID-19 Psychological Wellbeing Study were analysed (N = 1963, 18-87 years, M = 37.11, SD = 12.86, 70% female). Logistic regression analysis was used to look at the influence of sociodemographic, social, health and COVID-19 specific factors on loneliness. Results: The prevalence of loneliness was 27% (530/1963). Risk factors for loneliness were younger age group (OR: 4.67 – 5.31), being separated or divorced (OR: 2.29), meeting clinical criteria for major depression (OR: 1.74), greater emotion regulation difficulties (OR: 1.04), and poor quality sleep due to the COVID-19 crisis (OR: 1.30). Higher levels of social support (OR: 0.92), being married/co-habiting (OR: 0.35) and living with a great number of adults (OR: 0.87) were protective factors. Conclusions: Rates of loneliness during the initial phase of lockdown were high. Risk factors were not specific to the COVID-19 crisis. Findings suggest that supportive interventions to reduce loneliness should prioritise younger people and those with mental health symptoms. Improving emotion regulation and sleep quality may be optimal initial targets to reduce the impact of COVID-19 regulations on mental health outcomes.


Author(s):  
Zubair Ahmed Ratan ◽  
Anne-Maree Parrish ◽  
Sojib Bin Zaman ◽  
Mohammad Saud Alotaibi ◽  
Hassan Hosseinzadeh

Background: Smartphones play a critical role in increasing human–machine interactions, with many advantages. However, the growing popularity of smartphone use has led to smartphone overuse and addiction. This review aims to systematically investigate the impact of smartphone addiction on health outcomes. Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were used to carry out the systematic review. Five electronic databases including Medline, Web of Science, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus were searched to identify eligible studies. Eligible studies were screened against predetermined inclusion criteria and data were extracted according to the review questions. This review is registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020181404). The quality of the articles was assessed using the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies. Results: A total of 27 of 2550 articles met the inclusion criteria. All of the studies were cross-sectional and focused on physical, mental, and neurological health outcomes. The majority of the studies focused on mental health outcomes and consistent associations were observed between smartphone addiction and several mental health outcomes. Anxiety and depression were commonly found to mediate mental health problems. A wide range of physical health sequelae was also associated with smartphone addiction. Furthermore, there was an association between smartphone addiction and neurological disorders. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that there are consistent associations between smartphone addiction and physical and mental health, especially mental health. Social awareness campaigns about smartphone addiction and its impact on physical and mental health are needed. Further studies, especially randomized controlled trials, are warranted to validate the impacts of smartphone addiction.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Lewis ◽  
L. C. Roden ◽  
K. Scheuermaier ◽  
F. X. Gomez-Olive ◽  
D. E. Rae ◽  
...  

AbstractDuring lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals have experienced poor sleep quality and sleep regularity, changes in lifestyle behaviours, and heightened depression and anxiety. However, the inter-relationship and relative strength of those behaviours on mental health outcomes is still unknown. We collected data between 12 May and 15 June 2020 from 1048 South African adults (age: 32.76 ± 14.43 years; n = 767 female; n = 473 students) using an online questionnaire. Using structural equation modelling, we investigated how insomnia symptoms, sleep regularity, exercise intensity/frequency and sitting/screen-use (sedentary screen-use) interacted to predict depressive and anxiety-related symptoms before and during lockdown. We also controlled for the effects of sex and student status. Irrespective of lockdown, (a) more severe symptoms of insomnia and greater sedentary screen-use predicted greater symptoms of depression and anxiety and (b) the effects of sedentary screen-use on mental health outcomes were mediated by insomnia. The effects of physical activity on mental health outcomes, however, were only significant during lockdown. Low physical activity predicted greater insomnia symptom severity, which in turn predicted increased depressive and anxiety-related symptoms. Overall, relationships between the study variables and mental health outcomes were amplified during lockdown. The findings highlight the importance of maintaining physical activity and reducing sedentary screen-use to promote better sleep and mental health.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
K. F. Ahrens ◽  
R. J. Neumann ◽  
B. Kollmann ◽  
J. Brokelmann ◽  
N. M. von Werthern ◽  
...  

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic and resulting measures can be regarded as a global stressor. Cross-sectional studies showed rather negative impacts on people’s mental health, while longitudinal studies considering pre-lockdown data are still scarce. The present study investigated the impact of COVID-19 related lockdown measures in a longitudinal German sample, assessed since 2017. During lockdown, 523 participants completed additional weekly online questionnaires on e.g., mental health, COVID-19-related and general stressor exposure. Predictors for and distinct trajectories of mental health outcomes were determined, using multilevel models and latent growth mixture models, respectively. Positive pandemic appraisal, social support, and adaptive cognitive emotion regulation were positively, whereas perceived stress, daily hassles, and feeling lonely negatively related to mental health outcomes in the entire sample. Three subgroups (“recovered,” 9.0%; “resilient,” 82.6%; “delayed dysfunction,” 8.4%) with different mental health responses to initial lockdown measures were identified. Subgroups differed in perceived stress and COVID-19-specific positive appraisal. Although most participants remained mentally healthy, as observed in the resilient group, we also observed inter-individual differences. Participants’ psychological state deteriorated over time in the delayed dysfunction group, putting them at risk for mental disorder development. Consequently, health services should especially identify and allocate resources to vulnerable individuals.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Baker ◽  
Héloïse Sirois-Leclerc ◽  
Heather Tulloch

Physical activity interventions have recently become a popular strategy to help postmenopausal women prevent and manage obesity. The current systematic review evaluates the efficacy of physical activity interventions among overweight and obese postmenopausal women and sheds light on the behavioral change techniques that were employed in order to direct future research.Method. Five electronic databases were searched to identify all prospective RCT studies that examine the impact of physical activity on adiposity indicators, physical capacity, and/or mental health outcomes among healthy, sedentary overweight, and obese postmenopausal women in North America. The behavior change technique taxonomy was used to identify the various strategies applied in the programs.Results. Five RCTs met the inclusion criteria. The findings showed that adiposity indicators and physical capacity outcomes significantly improved following long-term interventions; however, mental health outcomes showed nonsignificant changes. Furthermore, 17 behavior change techniques were identified with the taxonomy across all trials. The intrapersonal-level techniques were the most common.Conclusion. Physical activity interventions had a positive effect on adiposity measures and physical capacity. Future research should focus on testing the effectiveness of physical activity interventions on mental health and incorporate strategies at the individual and environmental level to maximize the health impact on the population.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hridaya Raj Devkota ◽  
Tula Ram Sijali ◽  
Ramji Bogati ◽  
Meraj Ahmad ◽  
Karuna Laxmi Shakya ◽  
...  

Background: The COVID 19 pandemic has been creating a panic and distressing situations among the entire population globally including Nepal. No study has been conducted assessing the psychological impact of this pandemic on the general public in Nepal. The objective of this study is to assess the mental health status during COVID 19 outbreak and explore the potential influencing factors among the population attending the hospital fever clinics with COVID 19 symptoms. Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted between May to June, 2020 with a sample of 645 participants aged 18 and above in 26 hospitals across Nepal. Telephone interviews were conducted using a semi-structured questionnaire along with a validated psychometric tool, the Depression, Anxiety and Stress (DASS21) scale. The metrics and scores of symptoms and their severity were created and analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association of potential covariates with outcome variables. Results: The prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress were 14%, 7% and 5% respectively. Participants from Bagmati province reported higher level of anxiety (OR 3.87, 95% CI 1.42 10.59), while stress (OR 4.78, 95% CI 1.09 21.29) and depressive symptoms (OR 3.37, 95% CI 1.10 10.35) observed higher among the participants in Province 1. Women were more at risk of anxiety (OR 4.26, 95% CI 2.21 8.20) and depression (2.75, 95% CI 1.16 6.51) than men. Similarly, people with primary level education found more prone to all factors, stress (OR 20.35, 95% CI 2.06 201.19), anxiety (OR 3.10, 95% CI 1.24 7.91), and depression (OR 4.41, 95% CI 1.29 15.07). More farmers than labors showed higher odds (OR 2.25, 95% CI 1.01 5.01) for anxiety, while individuals surveyed who reported their health status as poor-had higher odds (OR 5.95, 95% CI 1.08 32.68) for depression. Also, people currently living in rented houses reported more stress (OR 3.11, 95% CI 1.07 9.05) and those living far from family reported higher rates of depressive symptoms (OR 3.57, 95% CI 1.01 12.58). Conclusion: The study identified increased prevalence of stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms during the initial stage of COVID 19 pandemic in Nepal. Considering the findings, there is urgent need to develop and implement appropriate community-based mental health programs targeting individuals who have had COVID 19 symptoms and who are prone to develop adverse mental health outcomes. Key words: COVID 19, Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Pandemic, Public Health, Nepal


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raphaella Lewis ◽  
Laura C. Roden ◽  
Karine Scheuermaier ◽  
Francesc X. Gomez-Olive ◽  
Dale E. Rae ◽  
...  

Abstract During lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals have experienced changes in sleep and lifestyle behaviours, and heightened depression and anxiety. However, the inter-relationship and relative strength of those behaviours on mental health outcomes is still unknown. Using structural equation modelling, we investigated how insomnia symptoms, sleep regularity, exercise intensity/frequency and sitting/screen-use (sedentary screen-use) interacted to predict depressive and anxiety-related symptoms before and during lockdown in 1048 South African adults (median age: 27y; n = 767 female; n = 473 students). We also controlled for the effects of sex and student status. Irrespective of lockdown, (a) more severe symptoms of insomnia and greater sedentary screen-use predicted greater symptoms of depression and anxiety and (b) the effects of sedentary screen-use on mental health outcomes were mediated by insomnia. The effects of physical activity on mental health outcomes, however, were only significant during lockdown. Low physical activity was associated with greater insomnia symptom severity, which in turn was associated with increased depressive and anxiety-related symptoms. Overall, relationships between the study variables and mental health outcomes were amplified during lockdown. The findings highlight the importance of maintaining physical activity and reducing sedentary screen-use to promote better sleep and mental health.


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