Comparison of Sports Participation, Physical Activity Level, and Body Mass Index of Elementary School Students at the Beginning and After One Year of COVID-19 Quarantine

10.22034/ijmbsp.2023.411201.1078
Volume 3, Issue 2
Autumn 2023
Pages 1-8

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant professor, Department of Physical Education, Faculty of Humanities, Islamic Azad University, Rasht Branch, Rasht, Iran

2 PhD, Department of Physical Education, Faculty of Humanities, Islamic Azad University, Rasht Branch, Rasht, Iran

3 MSc, Department of Physical Education, Faculty of Humanities, Islamic Azad University, Rasht Branch, Rasht, Iran

Abstract
The covid-19 epidemic caused not only home quarantine but also public health concerns. This study aimed to compare sports participation, physical activity level, and body mass index of elementary school students in Guilan province at the beginning and after one year of COVID-19 quarantine. The statistical population included all the students studying at the elementary level of Guilan province in the academic year of 2020-2021, and 384 people were selected as samples from the cities of Astana, Lahijan, Foman, Anzali, and Rasht. The International Questionnaire of Physical Activity (short form) and Gill Participation Motivation Questionnaire were completed by the parents of the children. Paired t-test was used to examine the difference between the variables at the beginning and after one year of covid-19 at a significance level of 0.05. The results showed that the sports participation and physical activity level of primary school students after the COVID-19 period had a significant decrease compared to the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak (p<0.001). Also, a significant increase in the body mass index of the participants was observed after COVID-19 compared to the beginning (p<0.001). According to the findings, it can be concluded that the home quarantine caused by the COVID-19 virus reduced the level of physical activity, sports participation, and body mass index of primary school students.

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Subjects
  • Receive Date 12 July 2023
  • Revise Date 13 August 2023
  • Accept Date 14 September 2023