| Title: |
Physical activity and COVID-19: an observational and Mendelian randomisation study. |
| Authors: |
Zhang, Xiaomeng; Li, Xue; Sun, Ziwen; He, Yazhou; Xu, Wei; Campbell, Harry; Dunlop, Malcolm G; Timofeeva, Maria; Theodoratou, Evropi |
| Publisher Information: |
International Society of Global Health; Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Cancer Genetic Epidemiology; //doi.org/10.7189/jogh.10.020514 |
| Publication Year: |
2026 |
| Collection: |
Apollo - University of Cambridge Repository |
| Subject Terms: |
Adult; Aged; Body Mass Index; COVID-19; Exercise; Female; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; Mendelian Randomization Analysis; Middle Aged; Pandemics; Prospective Studies; SARS-CoV-2; United Kingdom |
| Description: |
BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) is known to be a protective lifestyle factor against several non-communicable diseases while its impact on infectious diseases, including Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is not as clear. METHODS: We performed univariate and multivariate logistic regression to identify associations between both objectively and subjectively measured PA collected prospectively and COVID-19 related outcomes (overall COVID-19, inpatient COVID-19, outpatient COVID-19, and COVID-19 death) in the UK Biobank cohort. Subsequently, we tested causality by using Mendelian randomisation (MR) analyses. RESULTS: In the multivariable model, the increased acceleration vector magnitude PA (AMPA) is associated with a decreased probability of overall and outpatient COVID-19 with an odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.80 (0.69, 0.93) and 0.74 (0.58, 0.95), respectively. No association is found between self-reported moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) and COVID-19 related outcomes. No association is found by MR analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate a protective effect of objectively measured PA and COVID-19 outcomes (outpatient COVID-19 and overall COVID-19) independent of age, sex, measures of obesity, and smoking status. Although the MR analyses do not support a causal association, that may be due to limited power. We conclude that policies to encourage and facilitate exercise at a population level during the pandemic should be considered. |
| Document Type: |
article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: |
Print; application/pdf |
| Language: |
English |
| Relation: |
https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/397887 |
| Availability: |
https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/397887 |
| Rights: |
Attribution 4.0 International ; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Accession Number: |
edsbas.1350ADB2 |
| Database: |
BASE |