Lifestyle Changes and Baseball Activity among Youth Baseball Players before and during the First COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan.

Ryota Kuratsubo,Emi Nakamura,Masumi Yoshimoto,Masashi Kawabata,Hiroyuki Watanabe,Satoshi Tsunoda,Yuji Takazawa

doi:10.3390/children9030368

Abstract

This cross-sectional study aimed to clarify the changes in lifestyle and baseball activity before and during the COVID-19 pandemic among youth baseball players. Participants were 99 youth baseball players (ages 9.6 ± 1.5 years, height 137.8 ± 9.4 cm, weight 35.3 ± 12.4 kg) in Japan. They completed an online survey between April 6 and 20, 2021, on their demographic characteristics, lifestyle (recreational screen, sleep, and study times), and baseball activity (frequency of team practice time and voluntary exercise-related baseball) at two-time points: before the pandemic (before March 2020) and during the state of emergency declared in Japan (from April to May 2020). The changes in outcomes between the two-time points were evaluated for significance. Recreational screen time and sleeping time during the state of emergency were significantly increased compared to those before the pandemic (p < 0.001). The frequency of team practice time on weekends during the state of emergency was significantly reduced, and voluntary exercise-related baseball was significantly increased compared to that before the pandemic (p < 0.01). We found that the COVID-19 pandemic changed behaviors concerning activities and exercise among youth baseball players and recommended that such behavioral changes be carefully monitored.

Highlights

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, declared by the World HealthOrganization on 11 March 2020, disrupted daily activities due to the need for social isolation
We investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on activity and exercise levels among youth baseball players
We found that recreational screen time (RST) was significantly increased and that the frequency of team practice decreased during the state of emergency compared with the situation before the pandemic

Summary

Introduction

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, declared by the World HealthOrganization on 11 March 2020, disrupted daily activities due to the need for social isolation. In Japan, the first state of emergency was declared by the Japanese government from 7 April to 31 May 2020 This declaration resulted in restrictions on the activities of Japanese citizens, and it has been reported that the amount of time spent engaging in physical activity decreased by 26.5% during the state of emergency (April 2020) compared with a pre-COVID-19 period (January 2020) among older adults in Japan [1]. School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic were one of the major changes that affected the youth. Children lost access to opportunities for physical activity and sports outside of school, and the time spent at home increased. It has been reported that physical activity decreased, and screen time increased among pre-adolescent and adolescents (6–17 years old) in Shanghai [2] and children with obesity living in Italy [3]. Youth lifestyle behavior should be focused on screen time, study time, and sleeping time in the lifestyle

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion