Relation among Perceived Weight Change, Sedentary Activities and Sleep Quality during COVID-19 Lockdown: A Study in an Academic Community in Northern Italy

• Main Authors: Margherita Micheletti Cremasco, Anna Mulasso, Alessia Moroni, Andrea Testa, Raffaella Degan, Alberto Rainoldi, Emanuela Rabaglietti
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-03-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: weight changes; sedentary activities; sleep quality; COVID-19; workers; students
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/6/2943

In Italy, COVID-19 lockdown was imposed from 8 March until 3 May 2020 with negative consequences on the lifestyles and health of people. Within this context, the paper aims: (i) to analyse the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on perceived weight changes; (ii) to evaluate factors associated with the perception of weight changes (Body Mass Index (BMI), sleep quality, time spent in sedentary activities), in an Italian academic community of students and workers. A total of 3666 participants took part in this cross-sectional study (2838 students and 828 workers, of whom 73.0% were female). <i>T</i>-test, Chi-square test and the two-way ANOVA were used. Results showed that 43.3% of participants perceived a weight gain. Workers experienced a more substantial increase in body weight (0.7 kg) compared to students (0.3 kg; <i>p</i> = 0.013). A significant difference between preobese/obese workers (0.9 kg) and students (−0.3 kg; <i>p</i> < 0.001) was found. Overall, 57.0% of the sample was characterized by high levels of sedentary activities. Sedentary people noticed a higher weight gain (0.4 kg) compared to less sedentary people (0.3 kg; <i>p</i> = 0.048). More than 45% of participants reported a worsening of sleep quality and showed a perceived increase in body weight (0.5 kg) in comparison to those who improved their sleep quality (no weight change; <i>p</i> = 0.001). Designing tailored interventions to promote health-related behaviours during lockdown periods is essential.