Health-promoting Physical Activity During the Covid-19 Pandemic in Swedish Adults – Prevalence and Associated demographic factors

Sammanfattning: The Covid-19 pandemic prompted significant lifestyle changes, including physical inactivity and remote working. This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the prevalence of health-promoting physical activity (PA) and its association with demographic factors and remote working among Swedish adults (18-64 years) using secondary data collected during the Covid-19 pandemic. Health-promoting PA(HPPA) was defined according to WHO guidelines, and demographic factors were identified with the theoretical understanding of the Social ecological model for PA. Binary logistic regression was used to study the associations between demographic factors gender, age & occupation, and HPPA. Of the sample (n= 776), 50.3% were males, and the mean age was 43.6 years. The prevalence of health-promoting PA was 55 % in the total sample, 61% in males, and 48% in females. In occupation, the prevalence of HPPA was 63% in students and 49% in non-Manual workers. In logistic regression analysis, the odds of HPPA were lower in females (OR = 0.56; 95% CI 0.42- 0.75) than in males. In occupation, the odds of engaging in HPPA were lower in non-Manual workers (OR= 0.47, 95% CI, 0.27- 0.81) than in students/others. In conclusion, slightly more than half of the Swedish adults had health-promoting physical activity during covid 19 pandemic. However, HPPA was less common among females and non-Manual workers compared to males and students/others.