Students in a classroom, pre-pandemic. Image: monkeybusinessimages/IStock via AFP Relaxnews
Students, who are not necessarily known for having a healthy routine at the best of times, may be particularly affected by the measures taken to curb the global pandemic. Not only have lockdowns aggravated their sedentary lifestyle and alcohol consumption, but it also likely had an impact on their eating habits, reveals a study conducted by Canadian researchers.
Scientists at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada have been studying the impact of COVID-19, and more specifically lockdown measures designed to reduce its propagation, on students’ health practices.
The four-month study involved 125 students at the Universities of Saskatchewan and Regina who were considered vulnerable because they lived alone, with a roommate, or with a partner, and were responsible for buying and preparing their own meals. They were subjected to an online questionnaire, administered at the time of the introduction of restrictions to limit the spread of the virus, on their food consumption and physical activity before and during the pandemic.
“With pre-pandemic research already showing university students to be a vulnerable group for inadequate diet and physical activity, the measures imposed to curb the [COVID-19] pandemic presented a unique opportunity to examine further impact on their lives,” explains Gordon Zello, nutrition professor and lead author of the study.
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Published in the journal Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, this work initially revealed that students were eating less and less well on a daily basis during the pandemic. In fact, they consumed 20% less meat, 44% less dairy products, and up to 45% less vegetables. While lockdown meant that they also drank less tea and coffee, their alcohol consumption increased in particular.
Students are less active
