Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of a Daily Physical Activity Unit in Schools: Focus on Children and Adolescents in Austria Up to the 8th Grade.

Physical activity has a variety of health benefits for young people. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that children and adolescents aged 5-17 years should be physically active for at least 60 min a day. This Health Impact Assessment (HIA) examined the potential impact of a daily physical activity unit in Austrian schools, with a focus on children and adolescents up to eighth grade. The HIA methodology systematically followed several stages: screening and scoping, appraisal, and formulation of recommendations. A literature review, an online survey (n = 712), focus group discussions (n = 4), and appraisal workshops (n = 2) have been carried out. The analyzed results indicate a primarily positive impact on the individual health of children and adolescents, on social and community-related networks, on living and working conditions, and on the system level. Recommendations for the implementation include ensuring equal opportunities and support for disadvantaged children and schools. Furthermore, the comprehensible selection of pilot regions and the nationwide resource planning should be considered. Additional important factors include the education and further training of pedagogical staff and coaches, and the availability of sufficient infrastructure. In the long term, the fixed integration of five additional teaching units of physical activity per week, and an increased focus on the elementary/nursery school sector were identified as significant.

COVID-19 pandemic: health impact of staying at home, social distancing and 'lockdown' measures-a systematic review of systematic reviews.

BACKGROUND: To systematically review the evidence published in systematic reviews (SR) on the health impact of staying at home, social distancing and lockdown measures. We followed a systematic review approach, in line with PRISMA guidelines. METHODS: In October 2020, we searched the databases Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Ovid Medline, Ovid Embase and Web of Science, using a pre-defined search strategy. RESULTS: The literature search yielded an initial list of 2172 records. After screening of titles and abstracts, followed by full-text screening, 51 articles were retained and included in the analysis. All of them referred to the first wave of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. The direct health impact that was covered in the greatest number (25) of SR related to mental health, followed by 13 SR on healthcare delivery and 12 on infection control. The predominant areas of indirect health impacts covered by the included studies relate to the economic and social impacts. Only three articles mentioned the negative impact on education. CONCLUSIONS: The focus of SR so far has been uneven, with mental health receiving the most attention. The impact of measures to contain the spread of the virus can be direct and indirect, having both intended and unintended consequences.