Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

The Role of Diet and Physical Activity in Shaping COVID-19 Severity: Design, Validation, and Application of a Retrospective Questionnaire

Francisco Vásquez-Aguilar
ORCID logo ,
Marcela de Jesús Vergara-Jiménez
,
Oscar G. Figueroa-Salcido
,
Jesús G. Arámburo-Gálvez
,
Feliznando Isidro Cárdenas-Torres
,
Noé Ontiveros
,
Erika Martínez-López
,
Elisa Barrón-Cabrera
* ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 4 March 2024 / Approved: 5 March 2024 / Online: 6 March 2024 (11:42:11 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Vásquez-Aguilar, F.; Vergara-Jiménez, M.J.; Figueroa-Salcido, O.G.; Arámburo-Gálvez, J.G.; Cárdenas-Torres, F.I.; Ontiveros, N.; Martínez-López, E.; Barrón-Cabrera, E. The Role of Diet and Physical Activity in Shaping COVID-19 Severity: Design, Validation, and Application of a Retrospective Questionnaire. Healthcare 2024, 12, 813. Vásquez-Aguilar, F.; Vergara-Jiménez, M.J.; Figueroa-Salcido, O.G.; Arámburo-Gálvez, J.G.; Cárdenas-Torres, F.I.; Ontiveros, N.; Martínez-López, E.; Barrón-Cabrera, E. The Role of Diet and Physical Activity in Shaping COVID-19 Severity: Design, Validation, and Application of a Retrospective Questionnaire. Healthcare 2024, 12, 813.

Abstract

After the global challenges posed by COVID-19, researchers strived to identify risk factors for severe cases, which lead to various complications - including death. Lifestyle modifications, such as implementing a healthy diet and recommended physical activity, have shown to be protective against severe COVID-19 cases. Despite an association of a plant-based diet with reduced COVID-19 severity, specific dietary characteristics have not been identified. Also, the methodology for measuring physical activity is variable, with studies overlooking the intensity or the habit components of physical activity. To bridge this gap, our study designed, validated, and applied a retrospective questionnaire with aims of exploring the relationship between lifestyle factors, specifically diet and physical activity, and severe COVID-19. We considered the intensity and years of physical activity habit, which is a limitation of other questionnaires. Results reveal associations of age and BMI with severe COVID-19. An excessive sugar diet was found to be associated with severe COVID-19 and increased symptom duration. We also observed an inverse relationship pattern of moderate and vigorous intensity physical activity across case severity, which is absent in walking PA. This study lays a foundation for research aiming to identify lifestyle factors that prevent severe COVID-19 cases.

Keywords

COVID-19; physical activity; diet; lifestyle; questionnaire

Subject

Public Health and Healthcare, Public Health and Health Services

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Download PDF Download Supplementary

Comments (0)

We encourage comments and feedback from a broad range of readers. See criteria for comments and our Diversity statement.

Leave a public comment
Send a private comment to the author(s)
* All users must log in before leaving a comment
Views 0
Downloads 0
Comments 0
Metrics 0
Get PDF Supplementary Files Cite Share 0
Bookmark BibSonomy Mendeley Reddit Delicious
×
Alerts
Notify me about updates to this article or when a peer-reviewed version is published.
We use cookies on our website to ensure you get the best experience.
Read more about our cookies here.