Changes in Accelerometer-measured Physical Activity and Sedentary Behavior From Before to After COVID-19 Outbreak in...

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Public Health
• Epidemiology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic may have negatively impacted physical activity (PA) and increased sedentary behavior (SB) in workers.
• Previous research often relied on self-reported data, limiting objective assessment.
• This study addresses the need for objective measurement of PA and SB changes during the pandemic.

Purpose of the Study:

• To objectively examine changes in PA and SB among Japanese workers before and after the COVID-19 outbreak.
• To quantify the impact of the pandemic on daily physical activity levels and sedentary time.

Main Methods:

• A 1-year longitudinal study involving Japanese workers in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
• Accelerometer-based objective measurement of PA and SB over at least 10 days per participant, before (2019) and during (2020) the COVID-19 outbreak.
• Paired t-tests were used to analyze changes in the percentage of time spent in PA and SB.

Main Results:

• 536 workers (70.8% of eligible) were included in the analysis (mean age 53.3 years, 69.6% female).
• Objectively measured PA decreased by approximately 10 minutes per day on both weekdays and weekends (though weekend changes were not significant).
• Objectively measured SB increased by approximately 10 minutes per day on both weekdays and weekends.

Conclusions:

• The COVID-19 outbreak was associated with a significant decrease in objectively measured physical activity among Japanese workers.
• Sedentary behavior significantly increased among Japanese workers following the COVID-19 outbreak.
• These findings highlight a measurable decline in physical activity and a rise in sedentary time in the Japanese working population due to the pandemic.