In a new study, researchers found that physical inactivity is linked to more severe COVID-19 infection and a heightened risk of dying from the disease.
Patients with COVID-19 who were consistently inactive during the 2 years preceding the pandemic were more likely to be admitted to the hospital, to require intensive care, and to die than were patients who had consistently met physical activity guidelines.
Several risk factors for severe COVID-19 infection have been identified, including advanced age, male sex, and certain underlying medical conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, and heart disease.
But physical inactivity is not one of them, even though it is a well-known contributory risk factor for several long-term conditions, including those associated with severe COVID-19.
In the study, the team examined 48,440 adults with confirmed COVID-19 infection between January and October 2020.
The patients’ average age was 47; nearly two-thirds were women (62%). Their average weight (BMI) was 31, which is classified as obese.
Around half had no underlying conditions, including diabetes, COPD, heart disease, kidney disease, and cancer; nearly 1 in 5 (18%) had only one, and almost a third (32%) had two or more.
The participants were classified as consistently inactive (0-10 mins/week); some activity (11-149 mins/week); or consistently meeting physical activity guidelines (150+ mins/week).
Some 7% were consistently meeting physical activity guidelines;15% were consistently inactive, with the remainder reporting some activity.
The team found some 9% of the total were admitted to hospital; around 3% required intensive care; and 2% died. Consistently meeting physical activity guidelines were strongly linked to a reduced risk of these outcomes.
After taking account of potentially influential factors, patients with COVID-19 who were consistently physically inactive were more than twice as likely to be admitted to the hospital as those who clocked up 150+ minutes of physical activity every week.
They were also 73% more likely to require intensive care, and 2.5 times more likely to die of the infection.
And patients who were consistently inactive were also 20% more likely to be admitted to the hospital, 10% more likely to require intensive care, and 32% more likely to die of their infection than were patients who were doing some physical activity regularly.
The team says that being consistently inactive was a stronger risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes than any of the underlying medical conditions and risk factors except for age and a history of organ transplant.
In fact, physical inactivity was the strongest risk factor across all outcomes, compared with the commonly cited modifiable risk factors, including smoking, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer.
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The study is published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
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