Relationships of the duration of working from home with obesity, obesity-related behaviors, physical activity, and stress level in workers in an academic institution during the COVID-19 pandemic
Keywords:
obesity, COVID-19, working from home, physical activity, stress level, workerAbstract
Background: Obesity is caused by an energy imbalance and predisposes toward the development of comorbidities. During the COVID-19 lockdown, behavioral changes may have disrupted energy balance. Previous studies have shown overeating, lower physical activity, and more substantial mental health issues in adults during such a lockdown. However, the relationships of working from home (WFH) with obesity-related parameters, including behaviors, might differ according to individual circumstances. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to characterize the relationships of WFH during the initial COVID-19 lockdown on the obesity, stress level, physical activity, and obesity-related behaviors in workers at an academic institution in Thailand.
Methods: We evaluated these parameters using an anonymous online questionnaire.
Results: We found that the body weight (p < 0.05) and body mass index (BMI; p < 0.05) of participants who had worked from home were significantly higher after 15 days of the WFH. Similarly, those who had worked from home for 30 days reported that their BMIs had also increased (p < 0.05). The frequency of food delivery was significantly lower in participants who had worked from home for 60 days (p < 0.05) and for >60 days (p < 0.05) than in the 30-day WFH group. In addition, the stress level of the 30-day WFH group was higher than that of the 15-day WFH group (p < 0.05), but lower than that of the 60-day WFH group (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: In conclusion, WFH for a short period of time was associated with increases in body weight and BMI, and changes to obesity-related behaviors. These changes in physical parameters were found to be associated with changes in stress level. These findings may be helpful for the creation of guidelines regarding the preservation of both the physical and mental health of workers during lockdowns. The energy provided by the various sources of nutrition should be assessed in the future because these are important for the bioenergetics and weight gain of workers during such a lockdown.
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