Effect of Covid-19 on the Lifestyles of Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Elite Athletes: A Cross-Country Analysis
Keywords:
COVID-19, elite athletes, vaccination, lifestyleAbstract
Background: The global COVID-19 pandemic has led to widespread home confinement and quarantine measures. Despite ongoing vaccination efforts, some elite athletes have shown hesitancy about getting vaccinated.
Aim: This study sought to analyze the impact of COVID-19 on the lifestyles of vaccinated and unvaccinated elite athletes through a cross-country comparison.
Methods: In 2021, an online survey was administered to 581 elite athletes aged 18-35 from different countries across four continents. The survey included socio-individual data, the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the Rapid Eating Assessment for Participants (REAP-S), and the Petersburg Sleep Quality Questionnaire (PSQI). The participants voluntarily agreed to take part in the survey. The data analysis employed U-Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon tests, with a significance level of alpha p< 0.05.
Results: The findings demonstrated a significant disparity in the physical activity and dietary habits of vaccinated versus unvaccinated elite athletes (p<0.001). However, no notable variance was observed in sleep quality between the two groups (p=0.270).
Conclusion: Despite nearly half of the surveyed elite athletes being unvaccinated, their physical activity levels surpassed those of vaccinated counterparts during the pandemic. Furthermore, vaccinated elite athletes exhibited better eating habits compared to their unvaccinated counterparts. Notably, no significant difference was evident in sleep quality between the two groups.
Downloads
References
1. Taheri M, Esmaeili A, Irandoust K, Mirmoezzi M, Souissi A, Laher I, et al. Mental health, eating habits and physical activity levels of elite Iranian athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Science & Sports. 2023. [PMID: 37362084] [PMCID: PMC10243596] [DOI]
2. Taheri M, Saad HB, Washif JA, Reynoso-Sánchez LF, Mirmoezzi M, Youzbashi L, et al. Comparative Study of the Long-Term Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Mental Health and Nutritional Practices Among International Elite and Sub-Elite Athletes: A Sample of 1420 Participants from 14 Countries. Sports Medicine-Open. 2023;9(1):104. [PMID: 37938473] [PMCID: PMC10632320] [DOI]
3. Taheri M, Irandoust K, Reynoso-Sánchez LF, Muñoz-Helú H, Cruz-Morales KN, Torres-Ramírez R, et al. Effects of home confinement on physical activity, nutrition, and sleep quality during the COVID-19 outbreak in amateur and elite athletes. Frontiers in nutrition. 2023;10:1143340. [PMID: 37139442] [PMCID: PMC10150803] [DOI]
4. Dergaa I, Abdelrahman H, Varma A, Yousfi N, Souissi A, Ghram A, et al. COVID-19 vaccination, herd immunity and the transition toward normalcy: challenges with the upcoming sports events. Annals of Applied Sport Science. 2021;9(3):0-. [DOI]
5. Baramacheva E. Vaccination in athletes during the Covid-19 crisis: A qualitative approach 2022.
6. Venhorst A, Gärtner B, Hollander K, Meyer T. Vaccinations in Athletes. German Journal of Sports Medicine/Deutsche Zeitschrift fur Sportmedizin. 2022;73(6). [DOI]
7. Pecora F, Persico F, Argentiero A, Neglia C, Esposito S. The role of micronutrients in support of the immune response against viral infections. Nutrients. 2020;12(10):3198. [PMID: 33092041] [PMCID: PMC7589163] [DOI]
8. Calder PC, Carr AC, Gombart AF, Eggersdorfer M. Optimal nutritional status for a well-functioning immune system is an important factor to protect against viral infections. Nutrients. 2020;12(4):1181. [PMID: 32340216] [PMCID: PMC7230749] [DOI]
9. Irandoust K, Taheri M. Effects of different daytime exercises on the quality of sleep and appetite of obese women. International Archives of Health Sciences. 2018;5(4):111-4. [DOI]
10. Khcharem A, Souissi M, Sahnoun Z. Effects of Repeated Low-dose Caffeine Ingestion During a Night of Total Sleep Deprivation on Physical Performance and Psychological State in Young Recreational Runners. International Journal of Sport Studies for Health. 2021;4(1). [DOI]
11. Rezaei M, Hatami F, Lotfi G. The Impact of Different Attentional Focus Strategies During Modeling on the Acquisition and Retention of Free Throws in Basketball. International Journal of Sport Studies for Health. 2023;6(1). [DOI]
12. Taheri M, Irandoust K. Morning exercise improves cognitive performance decrements induced by partial sleep deprivation in elite athletes. Biological Rhythm Research. 2020;51(4):644-53. [DOI]
13. Watson AM. Sleep and athletic performance. Current sports medicine reports. 2017;16(6):413-8. [PMID: 29135639] [DOI]
14. Romdhani M, Rae DE, Nédélec M, Ammar A, Chtourou H, Al Horani R, et al. COVID-19 lockdowns: a worldwide survey of circadian rhythms and sleep quality in 3911 athletes from 49 countries, with data-driven recommendations. Sports Medicine. 2022;52(6):1433-48. [PMID: 34878639] [PMCID: PMC8652380] [DOI]
15. Vitale J, Borghi S, Codella R, Lastella M, Nedelec M, Banfi G, La Torre A. Are elite track and field athletes on track? The impact of COVID-19 outbreak on sleep behavior and training characteristics. Biology of Sport. 2021;38(4):741-51. [PMID: 34937986] [PMCID: PMC8670798] [DOI]
16. Di Liegro CM, Schiera G, Proia P, Di Liegro I. Physical activity and brain health. Genes. 2019;10(9):720. [PMID: 31533339] [PMCID: PMC6770965] [DOI]
17. Foster PP, Rosenblatt KP, Kuljiš RO. Exercise-induced cognitive plasticity, implications for mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. Frontiers in neurology. 2011;2:28. [PMID: 21602910] [PMCID: PMC3092070] [DOI]
18. Esch T, Stefano GB. Endogenous reward mechanisms and their importance in stress reduction, exercise and the brain. Archives of Medical science. 2010;6(3):447-55. [PMID: 22371784] [PMCID: PMC3282525] [DOI]
Downloads
Additional Files
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Mahdi Ashouri, Sadaf Nehzat Norozi tehrani, Karuppasamy Govindasamy (Author); Hassane Zouhal (Corresponding Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
