Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health

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Volume 11, Issue 1, March 2021, Pages 26 - 33

Is Physical Activity Associated with Mental Health among Chinese Adolescents during Isolation in COVID-19 Pandemic?

Authors
Sifan Kang, Yuliang Sun, Xinxin Zhang, Fangjun Sun, Bingqi Wang, Wenfei Zhu*
School of Physical Education, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an 710119, China
*Corresponding author. Email: wzhu@snnu.edu.cn
Corresponding Author
Wenfei Zhu
Received 9 July 2020, Accepted 4 September 2020, Available Online 11 September 2020.
DOI
10.2991/jegh.k.200908.001How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Physical activity; mood states; adolescents; COVID-19
Abstract

Background: Restricted outdoor activities and online learning during COVID-19 pandemic may pose threats on the physical and mental health of Chinese adolescents in middle schools. The study was to explore the relationship of Physical Activity (PA) and Sedentary Time (SED) with mood states among Chinese adolescents during the pandemic.

Methods: A total of 4898 adolescents (16.3 ± 1.3 years old) from 49 middle schools in 13 urban and rural areas in Yan’an, China volunteered to participate in this study and completed online questionnaires. International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) were used to measure PA and SED, and Profile of Mood States were used to evaluate mood states. We used Mann–Whitney U-test and Kruskal–Wallis test to assess differences in PA and SED in different sex and grade group, respectively. Mixed linear regression was used to analyze the relationship between PA/SED and mood states.

Results: Participants in our study accumulated 23.4 ± 52.5 min of moderate-to-vigorous PA and 363.6 ± 148.4 min of SED per day. The mood states of boys were better than that of girls (p < 0.01). The mood states of the students in Senior High School Grade 3 were at the highest level of mood disturbance. Higher levels of PA were significantly associated with lower levels of total mood disturbance in this population (High PA group according to IPAQ: B = −3.22, SE = 0.40, p < 0.001; Moderate: B = −1.47, SE = 0.37, p < 0.001, compared to Low PA group).

Conclusion: Chinese adolescents maintained a sedentary lifestyle during the COVID-19 pandemic. Girls and students in Grade 3 Senior High School had higher level of mood disturbance. More PA was associate with improving mood state among adolescents in the pandemic. The present study may assist policymakers and healthcare professionals understand PA and mood states of Chinese adolescents during the epidemic and take targeted actions in case of emergencies in future.

Copyright
© 2020 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

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<Previous Article In Issue
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Journal
Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue
11 - 1
Pages
26 - 33
Publication Date
2020/09/11
ISSN (Online)
2210-6014
ISSN (Print)
2210-6006
DOI
10.2991/jegh.k.200908.001How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2020 The Authors. Published by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Cite this article

risenwbib
TY  - JOUR
AU  - Sifan Kang
AU  - Yuliang Sun
AU  - Xinxin Zhang
AU  - Fangjun Sun
AU  - Bingqi Wang
AU  - Wenfei Zhu
PY  - 2020
DA  - 2020/09/11
TI  - Is Physical Activity Associated with Mental Health among Chinese Adolescents during Isolation in COVID-19 Pandemic?
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 26
EP  - 33
VL  - 11
IS  - 1
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/jegh.k.200908.001
DO  - 10.2991/jegh.k.200908.001
ID  - Kang2020
ER  -