Do the benefits of exercise in indoor and outdoor environments during the COVID 19 pandemic outweigh the risks of infection?
The coronavirus disease (COVID 19) pandemic has caused an unprecedented lockdown worldwide, resulting in social isolation due to the guidance for people to stay at home in quarantine to prevent the spread of this infectious disease [1] However, this control measure has several impacts on society, such as on psychological health, relationships, education, business, employment, and leisure time. Evidence shows that longer durations of quarantine are associated with poorer mental health, specifically posttraumatic stress symptoms [2] The duration of quarantine is a stress factor, and people who have stayed in quarantine for more than 10 days have shown significantly higher post traumatic stress symptoms than those in quarantine for fewer than 10 days [2] During the COVID 19 pandemic, symptoms of anxiety were verified in college students in China and in the Indian population, which could be caused by social distancing [3, 4] In a recent analysis of human needs in COVID 19 isolation, Matias, Dominski and Marks (2020) [5] showed several conditions emphasized by social distancing, such as satisfying immediate physiological needs, and the need for selfprotection, affiliation and status/self esteem; hence, there are negative mental health consequences, such as fear, anxiety and distress, and people are more vulnerable to depression due to low self esteem [5] This is evident in some fragile populations: in addition to being within the at risk/vulnerable group, older adults may be adversely affected by the discourses that imply that the loss of older life is not as important as the loss of life of younger people [6] for example, when health systems worldwide need to decide who should be prioritized for treatment of COVID 19. Although research on the consequences of the COVID19 pandemic on physical inactivity is at an initial stage [7] it is expected that people in quarantine at home could increase their sedentary behaviour through more screen time, characterized by the time watching television, using mobile devices, and playing games, thereby reducing physical activity levels. Physical inactivity is a huge public health issue and approximately one in three adults and four in five adolescents, worldwide, do not achieve the recommended quantity and quality of physical activity [8 10] and this issue can be potentiated as a function of COVID 19. There is a current concern about the effects of physical inactivity on the general population and notably on at risk/vulnerable groups for severe illness from COVID 19, such as older adults, people with cardiovascular disease and rheumatic diseases [11 16] The reduction in physical activity worsens the risks to these populations since there is an increasing risk factor burden. Social distancing implies negative consequences that are already happening; however, we need to discuss ways to mitigate these issues. There is a strong recommendation for people to stay active during this critical period to maintain physical and mental health [17] In light of public health recommendations, physical activity is on the table. Thus, this work aimed to discuss the counterbalance between the benefits of physical activity and the current infection risks of performing exercise in different environments. People should be advised of the need to perform regular physical activity due to two major points related to the fundamental role of physical activity: mental health and the immune system. Significant evidence shows that physical activity enhances the immune system [18, 19] as well as psychological well being [20, 21] and anti inflammatory effects [22] Next we expose the positive potential role of exercise that should be considered, especially in times of pandemic. Fabio Hech Dominski fabio.dominski@udesc.br
Sport Sciences for Health