The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to pose profound challenges to society. Its spread has been mitigated through strategies including social distancing; however, this may result in the adoption of a sedentary lifestyle. This study aimed to investigate: (1) physical activity (PA) levels, sedentary behavior (SB), and sleep in young adults during the COVID-19 epidemic, and (2) the change in these behaviors before and during the pandemic. A total of 631 young adults (38.8% males) aged between 18 and 35 participated in the cross-sectional study and completed a one-off online survey relating to general information, PA, SB, and sleep. For the longitudinal study, PA, SB, and sleep data, obtained from 70 participants before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, were analyzed. Participants engaged in low PA, high SB, and long sleep duration during the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, a significant decline in PA while an increase in time spent in both SB and sleep was observed during the COVID-19 outbreak. The results of this study demonstrated a sedentary lifestyle in young adults during the COVID-19 pandemic, which will assist health policymakers and practitioners in the development of population specific health education and behavior interventions during this pandemic and for other future events.
Background: Previous studies found that exercise interventions have positive effects on executive functions of the general population. However, studies seldom target executive functions of children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This study aimed to synthesise empirical studies regarding the effects of exercise interventions on executive functions of children and adolescents with ADHD. Methods: A systematic search of the relevant literature was conducted in March 2020 through six electronic databases: CINAHL Complete, Eric, MEDLINE, PsychINFO, SPORTDiscus with Full Text, and Web of Science. Randomised controlled trials/quasi-experimental designs that applied exercise interventions and assessed executive functions through neurocognitive tasks among children and adolescents with ADHD were included. Altogether, 314 studies were identified, from which 31 full texts were independently assessed by two authors for eligibility. Finally, 21 studies underwent systematic reviews and 15 were selected for meta-analysis. Data extraction procedures and risk of bias analysis were conducted by two independent authors using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. Results: The findings indicated that exercise interventions improved overall executive functions of children and adolescents with ADHD (SMD = 0.611, 95% CI [0.386 to 0.836], p < 0.01). Exercise interventions had a moderate-to-large positive effect on inhibitory control (g = 0.761, 95% CI [0.376 to 1.146], p < 0.01) and cognitive flexibility (g = 0.780, 95% CI [0.331 to 1.228], p < 0.001). Likewise, during the subgroup analysis, intervention intensity and sessions of exercise (acute vs chronic) significantly moderated exercise intervention rather than intervention type. Conclusions: Chronic sessions of exercise interventions with moderate intensity should be incorporated as treatment for children with ADHD to promote executive functions.
The impact of work–family conflict on well-being outcomes is well established, as is the role of social support in buffering perceptions of conflict. What is less well understood is how these relationships vary for different groups of respondents. Using a two-wave longitudinal design with a 12-month time lag and samples of employees (total N = 2183) from Australia, New Zealand, China and Hong Kong, the present research investigated whether the mediating relationships between social support, work–family conflict and well-being outcomes were moderated by gender, geographical region and the presence of dependants in the household. Supervisor support and family support were associated with lower work–family conflict, and hence reduced psychological strain and increased job and family satisfaction, for women and for employees in China and Hong Kong, but not for employees in Australia and New Zealand. However, the presence of dependants was not a significant moderator. Our findings illustrate the importance of exploring gender and national differences in work–family conflict research, particularly the investigation of cross-domain effects.
1 January 2013 in International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
Walking for transport can contribute to the accrual of health-enhancing levels of physical activity in elders. Identifying destinations and environmental conditions that facilitate this type of walking has public health significance. However, most findings are limited to Western, low-density locations, while a larger proportion of the global population resides in ultra-dense Asian metropolises. We investigated relationships of within-neighborhood objectively-measured destination categories and environmental attributes with walking for transport in 484 elders from an ultra-dense metropolis (Hong Kong). We estimated relationships of diversity (number of different types) and prevalence of within-neighborhood destination categories (environmental audits of 400 m buffers surrounding residential addresses) with transport-related walking (interviewer–administered questionnaire) in 484 Chinese-speaking elders able to walk unassisted and living in 32 neighborhoods stratified by socio-economic status and transport-related walkability. We examined the moderating effects of safety and pedestrian infrastructure-related neighborhood attributes on destination-walking associations. Participants reported on average 569 and 254 min/week of overall and within-neighborhood walking for transport, respectively. The prevalence of public transit points and diversity of recreational destinations were positively related to overall walking for transport. The presence of a health clinic/service and place of worship, higher diversity in recreational destinations, and greater prevalence of non-food retails and services, food/grocery stores, and restaurants in the neighborhood were predictive of more within-neighborhood walking for transport. Neighborhood safety-related aspects moderated the relationship of overall walking for transport with the prevalence of public transit points, this being positive only in safe locations. Similar moderating effects of safety-related attributes were observed for the relationships of within-neighborhood walking for transport with diversity of recreational and entertainment destinations. Pedestrian-infrastructure attributes acted as moderators of associations of within-neighborhood walking for transport with prevalence of commercial destination categories. Composite destinations indices consisting of destination categories related to the specific measures of walking were positively associated with walking for transport. The availability of both non-commercial and commercial destinations may promote within-neighborhood walking for transport, while recreational facilities and public transit points may facilitate overall walking for transport. However, destination-rich areas need to also provide adequate levels of personal safety and a physically-unchallenging pedestrian network.