JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020 and currently in the state of Texas, USA, there are more than 675,000 cases with 14,000 deaths. Many of these implementations can increase sedentary lifestyles. which can lead to the development of chronic diseases, obesity development among the population and overall cause serious threats to people’s physical health and lives. Individuals with pre-existing conditions are at increased risk of contracting COVID and thus may have higher levels of stress.

Objective:

Explore the relationship between individual’s level of physical activity and status of mental health, on individuals with health conditions versus those with none, before and after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic for the citizens of Texas.

Methods:

An electronic survey was disseminated throughout various regions of Texas. 157 respondents were asked questions about their demographics, time spent on daily physical activities, and daily mental health status before and after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. Frequency distribution and descriptive statistics was performed.

Results:

61% of participants reported having 1 or more health conditions with 13.6% of the respondents having 3+ medical conditions. These same individuals reported a 10% increase in 0-30 mins of daily activity after the pandemic declaration compared to a 10% increase in healthy individuals. There was a 2-fold increase in the number of participants reporting more frequent feelings of nervousness, worrying too much, having trouble relaxing and feeling afraid something awful might happen after the pandemic. More specifically, individuals with pre-existing medical conditions reported on average a 10% higher incidence of feelings of stress, anxiety and sadness compared to healthy counterparts after the pandemic declaration.

Conclusions:

Stressful life conditions and having a chronic disease are risk factors that can affect mental health and reduce the ability of proper daily functioning. Therefore, when implementing pandemic protocols, municipalities should consider providing mental health support to their citizens to protect them from this invisible adverse effect.