Abstract
As a result of the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 and consequent restrictions in spring 2020, children in many countries might be engaged in more sedentary behavior and have limited possibilities to access the necessary level of physical activity to maintain their physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to explore the relationships between child sedentary behavior, physical activity, mental and physical health, and parental distress in a sample of Lithuanian children aged 6–14 years during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in March–June 2020. Parents of 306 children (52.9% female) completed an online survey in May–June 2020 and reported on their children’s screen time for educational and recreational (leisure) purposes, the level of physical activity and time outdoors, somatic symptoms, and emotional well-being and behavior. Parents also reported on stressful life events in the family and personal distress. The results revealed that 57.5% of children exceeded the recommended maximum of 2 h of recreational screen time per day, and 33.6% of the children did not meet the recommended guidelines of 60 min of physical activity per day. Longer screen time for educational purposes and parental distress significantly predicted a higher prevalence of somatic symptoms in children and parental distress also served as a significant predictor of children’s decreased emotional well-being and behavior. These results highlight the importance of psychosocial support interventions for parents who experience distress when raising children at a stressful time, such as during a pandemic.
Highlights
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic for the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 on 11 March 2020
Children were more engaged in sedentary behavior (SB) and may have had limited possibilities to maintain the necessary level of physical activity (PA) to preserve their physical and mental health
The results indicate that children of parents who reported stressful events within the past year spent less time outdoors during the confinement (Mann–Whitney U = 4172.00, p =0.003)
Summary
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a pandemic for the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (which causes COVID-19) on 11 March 2020. The Lithuanian Government ordered a national lockdown on 16 March. To prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection in kindergartens and primary and secondary schools, distance education was introduced on 16 March and continued till 16 June. The second lockdown was introduced in November 2020 and is still going. The social and physical restrictions of the lockdown affected around half a million children aged 0–18 years in Lithuania. All these restrictions compromised the children’s health-related behavior and everyday routines. Children were more engaged in sedentary behavior (SB) and may have had limited possibilities to maintain the necessary level of physical activity (PA) to preserve their physical and mental health
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