Exercise Shown To Reduce Severity of Illness

In keeping with a examine of almost 200,000 adults, elevated bodily exercise was related to improved COVID-19 outcomes. This hyperlink held true throughout totally different races, ages, and genders, and even for individuals with power medical situations.

New analysis examine exhibits that extra train is related to decrease charges of hospitalization or loss of life after an infection, throughout various demographic teams and power situations.

Kaiser Permanente members who have been extra bodily lively previous to being recognized with COVID-19 had a lower risk of severe outcomes, according to research published on December 15, 2022, in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

The study of nearly 200,000 adults showed an association between physical activity and improved COVID-19 outcomes across major demographic groups regardless of whether patients had chronic medical conditions. Black, Hispanic, and Asian patients had a greater risk of adverse outcomes compared with white patients, in line with prior research. However, within each racial and ethnic group, more exercise was still associated with less severe COVID-19 outcomes.

“The main message is that every little bit of physical activity counts,” said the study’s lead author, Deborah Rohm Young, PhD, the director of the Division of Behavioral Research for the Kaiser Permanente Southern California Department of Research & Evaluation. “The more exercise the better, no matter a person’s race, ethnicity, age, sex, or chronic conditions.”

This research builds on earlier studies by closely examining the association between exercise and COVID-19 outcomes across demographic groups and chronic conditions.

In this study, Young and her colleagues analyzed the electronic health records of 194,191 adult patients at Kaiser Permanente in Southern California who were diagnosed with COVID-19 between January 2020 and May 2021, prior to widespread COVID-19 vaccination.

All patients had reported their physical activity levels prior to infection in a routine measure known as the Exercise Vital Sign. Each patient fell into 1 of 5 categories ranging from always inactive — 10 minutes of exercise or less per week, to always active — 150 minutes of exercise per week.

Statistical analysis showed that the more physical activity a patient reported, the lower the risk of hospitalization or death within 90 days of COVID-19 diagnosis. This trend was consistent across all activity levels, with always-active patients facing the lowest risk.

More exercise was also linked to lower rates of hospitalization or death for patients with certain underlying chronic conditions — such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease, or obesity — that are typically associated with an increased risk of poor COVID-19 outcomes.

“Our findings drive home the need for physicians to emphasize to their patients that getting vaccinated and being more physically active are 2 of the most important things you can do to prevent severe outcomes of COVID-19,” said the study’s senior author, Robert E. Sallis, MD, a family and sports medicine physician at the Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center.

Young said: “This is a powerful opportunity to develop stronger policies supporting physical activity as a pandemic-mitigation strategy. Our study provides new evidence to inform appropriate interventions across demographic groups.”

Reference: “Associations of Physical Inactivity and COVID-19 Outcomes Among Subgroups” by Deborah Rohm Young, PhD; James F. Sallis, PhD; Aileen Baecker, PhD; Deborah A. Cohen, MD, MPH; Claudia L. Nau, PhD; Gary N. Smith, PhD and Robert E. Sallis, MD, 14 December 2022, American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2022.10.007