Inequalities in Physical Activity During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Report on 4 Consecutive Population-Based Surveys in Southern Brazil.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to investigate inequalities in leisure-time physical activity (PA) practice amid the COVID-19 pandemic in a southern Brazilian city. METHODS: Four repeated population-based surveys were carried out. PA was collected using a questionnaire proposed by the authors and an adapted version of the leisure-time section of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. The sociodemographic variables were sex, age, skin color, and education level. The participants also answered questions regarding social distancing measures compliance. Descriptive analyses based on proportions and their respective P values for categorical variables were presented. The chi-square test for heterogeneity and linear trend was used. RESULTS: The sample is composed of 1556 individuals (66.1% female). Overall, between rounds 1 and 2, PA prevalence declined, followed by a gradual increase thereafter. PA practice during the pandemic was higher among men, individuals with higher education level, and individuals with white skin color in all rounds. In rounds 2, 3, and 4, PA was lower among individuals who were practicing more social distancing. CONCLUSION: To tackle the PA inequalities, policymakers and stakeholders need to confront disparities, defending greater availability of public policies that are attentive to inequalities, especially regarding gender, skin color, and educational level, to promote PA as a human right.

Association between food insecurity and major depressive episodes amid Covid-19 pandemic: results of four consecutive epidemiological surveys from southern Brazil.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the association between household food insecurity (FI) and major depressive episodes (MDE) amid Covid-19 pandemic in Brazil. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study carried out with data from four consecutive population-based studies. SETTING: The study was conducted between May and June 2020, in Bagé, a Brazilian southern city. Household FI was measured using the short-form version of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale. Utilising the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, we used two different approaches to define MDE: the cut-off point of ≥ 9 and the diagnostic criteria proposed by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR). Association between FI and MDE was analysed using crude and adjusted Poisson regression models. PARTICIPANTS: 1550 adults (≥ 20 years old). RESULTS: The prevalence of household FI was 29·4 % (95 % CI 25·0, 34·4). MDE prevalence varied from 4·4 % (95 % CI 3·1, 6·0), when we used the DSM-IV-TR criteria to define this condition, to 9·6 % (95 % CI 7·3, 12·5) of the sample, when we used the cut-off point of ≥ 9 as definition. The prevalence of MDE was more than two times higher in those individuals living with FI, independent of the criteria adopted to define the outcome. Adjustment for potential confounders did not change the association's magnitude. CONCLUSIONS: Household FI has been positively associated with MDE amid Covid-19 pandemic, independent of socio-demographic characteristics of participants. Actions are needed to warrant basic living conditions to avoid FI and hunger and its consequences for the Brazilian population, especially those consequences linked to mental health disorders.

Physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic: a population-based cross-sectional study in a city of South Brazil. / Prática de atividade física em meio à pandemia da COVID-19: estudo de base populacional em cidade do sul do Brasil.

This study aimed to describe leisure-time physical activity (LPA) during the COVID-19 pandemic in a municipality of Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil, according to gender, level of education, and adherence to social distancing. A population-based and cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out in Bagé (RS), Brazil. LPA during the pandemic, place of activity, and Physical Education professional's supervision, were described. The sample included 377 adults, and 24.4% reported LPA during the pandemic. Marked inequalities were observed. LPA prevalence among men was 20 percentage points (pp) higher than women and 40 pp higher among those with higher schooling than those with lower schooling. Among those reporting LPA, 53.5% practiced at home, and 64.8% did not report Physical Education professional supervision. No differences were observed between LPA and level of social distancing. Besides the recurrent discourse that people should include physical activity in the pandemic context, in the light of the marked inequalities observed, this study addressed sociocultural aspects and emphasized that LPA promotion initiatives require humanized approaches that consider the unequal living conditions of Brazilians.

O objetivo deste estudo foi descrever a prática de atividade física de lazer (AFL) em meio a pandemia do COVID-19 em cidade do Rio Grande do Sul, avaliando desigualdades entre os sexos e grupos de escolaridade e diferenças de acordo com o nível de distanciamento social. Trata-se de um estudo descritivo de corte transversal e base populacional com adultos no município de Bagé. Foram descritas a prática de AFL durante a pandemia, local de prática e orientação profissional. Na amostra de 377 adultos, 24,4% relataram prática de AFL durante a pandemia. Foram observadas marcantes desigualdades; a prevalência de AFL entre homens foi 20 pontos percentuais (pp) maior do que entre as mulheres, e 40 pp maior no grupo de maior escolaridade comparado ao grupo de menor escolaridade. Entre os que praticaram AFL durante a pandemia, 53,5% relataram a prática em casa e 64,8% não teve auxílio de um profissional de Educação Física. Não houve diferença na AFL de acordo com níveis de distanciamento social. Para além da reprodução do discurso de que as pessoas devam praticar atividade física no contexto da pandemia, este estudo buscou discutir aspectos socioculturais, enfatizando, à luz das desigualdades observadas, que a promoção de AFL necessita de olhar humanizado e atento à vida desigual das pessoas no Brasil.