COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans
Abstract Background COVID-19 has taken its toll on citizens in all 50 states of the United States. The United States (U.S.) leads the world with 30,291,863 confirmed reported cases and 549,664 deaths as of March 29, 2021 compared to globally confirmed cases at 127,442,926 and 2,787,915 deaths as of...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2021-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10825-6 |
| _version_ | 1818590526963712000 |
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| author | Elgloria Harrison Lillie Monroe-Lord Andrew D. Carson Anne Marie Jean-Baptiste Janet Phoenix Phronie Jackson B. Michelle Harris Elmira Asongwed Matthew L. Richardson |
| author_facet | Elgloria Harrison Lillie Monroe-Lord Andrew D. Carson Anne Marie Jean-Baptiste Janet Phoenix Phronie Jackson B. Michelle Harris Elmira Asongwed Matthew L. Richardson |
| author_sort | Elgloria Harrison |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background COVID-19 has taken its toll on citizens in all 50 states of the United States. The United States (U.S.) leads the world with 30,291,863 confirmed reported cases and 549,664 deaths as of March 29, 2021 compared to globally confirmed cases at 127,442,926 and 2,787,915 deaths as of March 29, 2021. The U.S. federal government primarily left the response to the virus to individual states, and each implemented varying measures designed to protect health of citizens and the state’s economic well-being. Unintended consequences of the virus and measures to stop its spread may include decreased physical activity and exercise, shifting access and consumption of food, and lower quality-of-life. Therefore, our primary goal was to quantify the impact of COVID-19 on health and well-being by measuring changes in physical activity, mental health-quality of life, food security and nutrition in adults ages 40 and older. We believed shifts in health behaviors would be more prevalent in minorities, less educated, lower socio-economic status, older adults, and those with underlying health conditions, so a secondary goal was to determine the impact of COVID-19 on these sub-populations. Methods We conducted an online survey with 9969 adults 40 years and older between 9 August and 15 September 2020 in urban areas across the four U.S. census regions. The survey included questions about demographic variables, pre-existing health conditions, physical activity, access to food, quality-of-life, and nutritional food status and asked participants to respond with information from pre-pandemic and pandemic conditions. We used paired-sample t-tests to detect changes in variables after the start of the pandemic and Cohen’s d to determine effect sizes. Results Our main findings showed a decrease in physical activity since the onset of COVID-19 for minorities and non-minorities. Food security also slightly increased for minorities during the pandemic, but we found no other changes in food security, quality-of-life indicators, or nutritional status of those who responded to this survey. Conclusions It is concerning that physical activity declined. Such activity helps maintain physical and mental health, and it is also an important time to socialize for many older adults. In many ways, our data indicate that the older adult population in U.S. cities may be more resilient than expected during the pandemic. However, the pandemic could have negative impacts that we did not detect, either due to the survey instrument or the timing of our survey, so the health and well-being of older adults should continue to be monitored in order to mitigate potential negative impacts. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-16T09:57:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-63f21c6116f14819bde0d70279e76ca4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2458 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-16T09:57:57Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-63f21c6116f14819bde0d70279e76ca42022-12-21T22:35:51ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582021-04-0121111110.1186/s12889-021-10825-6COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older AmericansElgloria Harrison0Lillie Monroe-Lord1Andrew D. Carson2Anne Marie Jean-Baptiste3Janet Phoenix4Phronie Jackson5B. Michelle Harris6Elmira Asongwed7Matthew L. Richardson8College of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaThe George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public HealthCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaCollege of Agriculture, Urban Sustainability and Environmental Sciences, University of the District of ColumbiaAbstract Background COVID-19 has taken its toll on citizens in all 50 states of the United States. The United States (U.S.) leads the world with 30,291,863 confirmed reported cases and 549,664 deaths as of March 29, 2021 compared to globally confirmed cases at 127,442,926 and 2,787,915 deaths as of March 29, 2021. The U.S. federal government primarily left the response to the virus to individual states, and each implemented varying measures designed to protect health of citizens and the state’s economic well-being. Unintended consequences of the virus and measures to stop its spread may include decreased physical activity and exercise, shifting access and consumption of food, and lower quality-of-life. Therefore, our primary goal was to quantify the impact of COVID-19 on health and well-being by measuring changes in physical activity, mental health-quality of life, food security and nutrition in adults ages 40 and older. We believed shifts in health behaviors would be more prevalent in minorities, less educated, lower socio-economic status, older adults, and those with underlying health conditions, so a secondary goal was to determine the impact of COVID-19 on these sub-populations. Methods We conducted an online survey with 9969 adults 40 years and older between 9 August and 15 September 2020 in urban areas across the four U.S. census regions. The survey included questions about demographic variables, pre-existing health conditions, physical activity, access to food, quality-of-life, and nutritional food status and asked participants to respond with information from pre-pandemic and pandemic conditions. We used paired-sample t-tests to detect changes in variables after the start of the pandemic and Cohen’s d to determine effect sizes. Results Our main findings showed a decrease in physical activity since the onset of COVID-19 for minorities and non-minorities. Food security also slightly increased for minorities during the pandemic, but we found no other changes in food security, quality-of-life indicators, or nutritional status of those who responded to this survey. Conclusions It is concerning that physical activity declined. Such activity helps maintain physical and mental health, and it is also an important time to socialize for many older adults. In many ways, our data indicate that the older adult population in U.S. cities may be more resilient than expected during the pandemic. However, the pandemic could have negative impacts that we did not detect, either due to the survey instrument or the timing of our survey, so the health and well-being of older adults should continue to be monitored in order to mitigate potential negative impacts.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10825-6CoronavirusResilienceQuality-of-lifeFood securityPhysical activityNutrition |
| spellingShingle | Elgloria Harrison Lillie Monroe-Lord Andrew D. Carson Anne Marie Jean-Baptiste Janet Phoenix Phronie Jackson B. Michelle Harris Elmira Asongwed Matthew L. Richardson COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans BMC Public Health Coronavirus Resilience Quality-of-life Food security Physical activity Nutrition |
| title | COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans |
| title_full | COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans |
| title_fullStr | COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans |
| title_full_unstemmed | COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans |
| title_short | COVID-19 pandemic-related changes in wellness behavior among older Americans |
| title_sort | covid 19 pandemic related changes in wellness behavior among older americans |
| topic | Coronavirus Resilience Quality-of-life Food security Physical activity Nutrition |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-10825-6 |
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