Public health research on physical activity and COVID-19: Progress and updated priorities

J Sport Health Sci. 2023 Sep;12(5):553-556. doi: 10.1016/j.jshs.2023.04.002. Epub 2023 Apr 23.

¹ Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0631, USA; Mary Mackillop Institute for Health Research, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning, College of Design, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27605, USA.
³ College of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA.
⁴ Department of Kinesiology and Health Education, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.

Abstract

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Research produced during the pandemic showed pre-diagnosis physical activity was associated with substantially lower risk of severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outcomes.
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Pandemic restrictions on common places for physical activity were associated with decreased physical activity and increased sedentary behavior.
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There were few studies of interventions to increase physical activity during the pandemic, the role of physical activity in COVID-19 inequities, and built environment contributions to COVID-19 outcomes.
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Emerging research priorities include physical activity and long COVID and physical activity as a vaccine adjuvant.
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Except for recommendations from the World Health Organization, physical activity was widely ignored in public health guidance.