A new study published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine has found that physical inactivity is associated with more severe COVID-19 infection. It also found that a sedentary lifestyle increases the risk of dying from the disease.
The study found that patients with COVID-19 who were consistently inactive during the 2 years preceding the pandemic were more likely to be admitted to hospital, to require intensive care, and to die than were patients who had consistently met physical activity guidelines, according to Science Daily.
COVID-infection has already been associated with other risk factors such as advanced age, male sex, and certain underlying comorbidities, such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
But, the study researchers noted that physical inactivity is not one of them, even though it is one of the contributory risk factors for several chronic conditions, including the ones linked to severe COVID-19 infection.
The researchers compared the risk factors in more than 48,000 adults with confirmed COVID-19 infection from January to October 2020. Nearly half of them had no underlying conditions, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, COPD, and cancer.
The team found that those who consistently met physical activity guidelines had a reduced risk of comorbidities associated with severe COVID-19 illness.
After considering potentially influential factors, such as age, race, sex, and underlying medical conditions, patients with COVID-19 who were physically inactive were more than twice as likely to be hospitalized than those who did 150+ minutes of physical activity every week.
In addition to that, physically inactive patients were also 20% more likely to be admitted to hospital, 10% more likely to require intensive care, and 32% more likely to die of their infection, according to Science Daily.
However, this is an observational study so it cannot establish cause. Plus, the study relied on patients’ own assessments of their physical activity and there were no measures of exercise intensity.
The researchers wrote, “It is notable that being consistently inactive was a stronger risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes than any of the underlying medical conditions and risk factors identified by [The Centers for Disease Control] except for age and a history of organ transplant.”
“In fact, physical inactivity was the strongest risk factor across all outcomes, compared with the commonly cited modifiable risk factors, including smoking, obesity, diabetes, hypertension [high blood pressure], cardiovascular disease and cancer,” they added.
The team concluded, “We recommend that public health authorities inform all populations that short of vaccination and following public health safety guidelines such as social distancing and mask use, engaging in regular [physical activity] may be the single most important action individuals can take to prevent severe COVID-19 and its complications, including death.”
“This message is especially important given the increased barriers to achieving regular [physical activity] during lockdowns and other pandemic restrictions,” they added. The article was published in Science Daily.
