Impact of Physical Activity on Health Behavior Change and Mental Health During the COVID-19 Epidemic Among Chinese Adults: China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS)

Wupeng Yin, Niliarys Sifre-Acosta, Daisy Chamorro, Susmita Chowdhury and Nan Hu ()
Additional contact information
Wupeng Yin: Department of Biostatistics, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
Niliarys Sifre-Acosta: Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
Daisy Chamorro: Department of Biostatistics, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
Susmita Chowdhury: Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
Nan Hu: Department of Biostatistics, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA

IJERPH, 2025, vol. 22, issue 2, 1-21

Abstract: Background: The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to daily life, affecting regular physical activity (PA) and health behaviors worldwide. This study investigates the associations between PA domains and changes in health behaviors and mental health outcomes among middle-aged and old Chinese adults. Methods: Using wave 5 cross-sectional data from the 2020 China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, we analyzed 17,180 adults aged 45 and above, focusing on health behavior changes such as smoking, alcohol consumption, dietary adjustments, and panic purchasing, as well as mental health outcomes like anxiety and fear. PA was classified by intensity levels—light, moderate, and vigorous—and by activity purposes—total, leisure, and occupational. Results: The findings indicate that leisure PA is associated with healthier behaviors, including lower odds of increased smoking (OR = 0.71, 95% CI: 0.57–0.90) and alcohol consumption (OR = 0.70, 95% CI: 0.54–0.90), whereas occupational PA is linked to adverse behavioral outcomes, such as higher odds of smoking (OR = 1.45, 95% CI: 1.15–1.83) and alcohol use (OR = 1.43, 95% CI: 1.10–1.86). Additionally, participants engaged in all domains of PA were more likely to experience anxiety and fear compared to those who were physically inactive. Conclusions: Our limited understanding of the role PA has on behavioral and mental health during public health crises highlights the importance of having tailored strategies to enhance resilience in similar future scenarios.

Keywords: physical activity; health behavior; mental health; older adults; COVID-19 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/2/201/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/2/201/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:2:p:201-:d:1580356

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().