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AuthorAl-Abdi, Tamara
AuthorHeraclides, Alexandros
AuthorPapageorgiou, Alexia
AuthorPhilippou, Elena
Available date2023-09-20T08:47:08Z
Publication Date2022
Publication NamePLoS ONE
ResourceScopus
ISSN19326203
URIhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0276426
URIhttp://hdl.handle.net/10576/47776
AbstractThe coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) resulted in lockdowns and social distancing measures enforced by governments around the world. This study aimed to identify changes in adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MD) and physical activity (PA) and associations with personality during lockdown. Using a cross-sectional design, a convenient sample of 543 adults in Qatar completed an online questionnaire consisting of validated tools to measure adherence to MD (MEDAS questionnaire, score ranges 0-13), PA (IPAQ, assessing light, moderate high intensity PA) and personality (BFI-10, categorizing individuals' personalities). The majority of the participants were female (89%), aged between 21 and 29 years (45%). The overall MD adherence decreased during lockdown (5.9 vs. 6.1, p < 0.001). There was an increase in olive oil (9% vs. 12%; p < 0.001), vegetables (54.3% vs. 58.7%; p = 0.005), legumes (11.8% vs. 15.3%; p = 0.007), sofrito (70.9% vs. 77.3%; p < 0.001) and fat (45.9% vs. 53.8%; p < 0.001) consumption and a decrease in fresh fruit (39.4% vs. 15.8%; p < 0.001) and fish/seafood (5.9% vs. 3.9%; p = 0.0035) consumption during lockdown. Met-min/week values of total PA (1330.5 vs. 1836.7), vigorous activity (711.5 vs. 867.4), moderate activity (208.3 vs. 301.3), and walking (410.7 vs. 668.0) all decreased during lockdown (p < 0.001, p = 0.010, p = 0.010 p < 0.001, respectively), while sitting increased (3837.3 vs. 2896.4 p < 0.001). The extraversion personality dimension had a higher MD adherence (p = 0.039) compared to agreeableness before lockdown. No changes in MEDAS scores were observed during lockdown in those with high levels of openness. Openness was positively associated with all PA (p = 0.027), including walking (p = 0.026), and negatively associated with sitting (p = 0.038) before lockdown, while participants with high scores for neuroticism were less likely to be sitting during lockdown (p = 0.042). The findings can be used to guide the development of appropriate personality-tailored lifestyle interventions.
SponsorThe publication of this article was funded by Qatar National Library. The authors would like to extend their gratitude and acknowledgments to all study participants and to Asma Jamil and Rawan Jomat for their technical assistance with the study. We thank Dr. Tara Desjardins for her kind proofreading and editing of the manuscript.
Languageen
PublisherPublic Library of Science
SubjectCommunicable Disease Control
COVID-19
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Humans
Male
Personality
Qatar
TitleImpact of the COVID-19 lockdown on lifestyle behaviors and their association with personality among adults in Qatar: A cross-sectional study
TypeArticle
Issue Number11-Nov
Volume Number17
dc.accessType Open Access


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