Perception of body image, food consumption, sedentary behavior and physical activity in a Brazilian academic population during the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic

PALUDO, Ana Carolina, Cicera DUARTE, Angelica STEIN, Michal SILVA, Helio SERASSUELO JUNIOR and Timothy CAVAZZOTTO. Perception of body image, food consumption, sedentary behavior and physical activity in a Brazilian academic population during the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Cuadernos de Psicologia del Deporte. University of Murcia, 2022, vol. 22, No 3, p. 41-47. ISSN 1578-8423. Available from: https://dx.doi.org/10.6018/cpd.442811.

Basic information

• Original name: Perception of body image, food consumption, sedentary behavior and physical activity in a Brazilian academic population during the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic
• Authors: PALUDO, Ana Carolina (76 Brazil, guarantor, belonging to the institution), Cicera DUARTE (76 Brazil), Angelica STEIN (76 Brazil), Michal SILVA (76 Brazil), Helio SERASSUELO JUNIOR (76 Brazil) and Timothy CAVAZZOTTO (76 Brazil).
• Edition: Cuadernos de Psicologia del Deporte, University of Murcia, 2022, 1578-8423.

Other information

• Original language: English
• Type of outcome: Article in a journal
• Field of Study: 30306 Sport and fitness sciences
• Country of publisher: Brazil
• Confidentiality degree: is not subject to a state or trade secret
• WWW: URL
• Organization unit: Faculty of Sports Studies
• Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.6018/cpd.442811
• Keywords in English: Body image; Covid-19 pandemic; Eating behavior; Physical activity; Sedentarism
• Tags: International impact, Reviewed

Abstract

The study evaluates the perception of body image associated with food consumption, sedentary behavior, and practice of physical activity responses during the COVID-19 lockdown in the academic population of a Brazilian University. Four hundred fifteen students answered an online survey during 1-31 May/2020. Frequencies were used to describe the outcomes, and the Chi-square test (p< 0.05) to determine associations. A negative perception of change in body image was found in both females and males (e.g., 73% and 55%, respectively), significantly associated with a perception of an increase in food consumption, watching TV and social media (more than 2 hours), not practicing physical activity in females, and with an increase in food consumption in males. The results presented a general picture of behavioral responses during the COVID-19 pandemic of students in Brazil, suggesting that a negative perception of body image changing has been associated with health-related behaviors, especially in females.