Table 3. Descriptive results of eating habits, screen time, physical activity levels and sleep quality during COVID-19 pandemic of 10–15 years old adolescents, stratified by sex and age categories.
| Variables | Total (n = 1298) | Boys (n = 692) | Girls (n = 606) | P value | 10–12 years (n = 724) | 13–15 years (n = 574) | P value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eating habits (days/week) a | |||||||
| 1. Had breakfast | 2.46 (1.31) | 2.49 (1.29) | 2.39 (1.36) | 0.722 | 2.41 (1.47) | 2.52 (1.11) | 0.672 |
| 2. Had lunch/dinner sitting together with family | 2.55 (1.22) | 2.52 (1.20) | 2.61 (1.24) | 0.743 | 2.68 (1.22) | 2.40 (1.21) | 0.241 |
| 3. Had an evening meal in front of the Television/any screen | 4.76 (1.04) | 4.65 (1.02) | 6.00 (1.06) | 0.238 | 4.86 (1.04) | 4.65 (1.03) | 0.449 |
| 4. Brought fast foods from outside/Ordered takeaways | 0.58 (0.13) | 0.54 (0.19) | 0.70 (0.10) | 0.227 | 0.58 (0.12) | 0.59 (0.23) | 0.962 |
| Snacking pattern (days/week) b | |||||||
| 1. Fresh Fruits | 4.71 (2.17) | 4.54 (2.66) | 5.06 (1.89) | 0.349 | 4.57 (2.21) | 4.87 (2.74) | 0.552 |
| 2. Salad | 1.50 (1.01) | 1.46 (1.01) | 1.58 (1.02) | 0.603 | 1.45 (0.97) | 1.56 (0.78) | 0.560 |
| 3. Healthy snacks | 1.94 (0.79) | 1.76 (0.65) | 2.15 (0.89) | 0.033 * | 1.89 (0.72) | 1.97 (0.81) | 0.221 |
| 4. High sugar foods | 2.94 (0.65) | 3.00 (0.65) | 2.82 (0.66) | 0.186 | 2.96 (0.62) | 2.92 (0.72) | 0.712 |
| 5. High-fat foods | 3.27 (0.60) | 3.23 (0.59) | 3.36 (0.60) | 0.272 | 3.29 (0.59) | 3.25 (0.60) | 0.762 |
| 6. High salt foods | 2.99 (0.71) | 3.03 (0.69) | 2.91 (0.72) | 0.424 | 2.96 (0.66) | 3.02 (0.75) | 0.685 |
| 7. Fast foods | 3.61 (0.56) | 3.62 (0.57) | 3.58 (0.56) | 0.714 | 3.64 (0.55) | 3.56 (0.58) | 0.472 |
| 8. Carbonated beverages | 3.68 (0.57) | 3.66 (0.55) | 3.73 (0.57) | 0.572 | 3.70 (0.44) | 3.63 (0.64) | 0.319 |
| Physical activity levels | |||||||
| Frequency of online PE classes/week | 1.70 (0.92) | 1.85 (0.85) | 1.39 (0.99) | 0.037 * | 2.02 (0.62) | 1.33 (0.82) | 0.048 * |
| Frequency of being active in PE/week | 1.44 (1.41) | 1.63 (1.26) | 1.03 (1.63) | 0.020 * | 1.91 (1.05) | 0.90 (1.10) | <0.001 ** |
| Mean PAQ- C/A score | 1.15 (1.47) | 1.44 (1.05) | 0.85 (0.61) | <0.001 ** | 1.18 (0.71) | 1.10 (0.73) | 0.045 * |
| PA level (n%) | |||||||
| Light PA (score <2) | 1142 (88.0) | 590 (85.3) | 552 (91.1) | 0.001 * | 629 (86.9) | 513 (89.4) | 0.168 |
| Moderate to vigorous (score >2) | 156 (12.0) | 102 (14.7) | 54 (8.9) | - | 95 (13.1) | 61 (10.6) | - |
| Screen related behaviors | |||||||
| Frequency of screen usage (d/week) | |||||||
| • Laptop/Computer | 5.12 (3.29) | 5.02 (2.89) | 5.22 (3.45) | 0.584 | 4.90 (2.28) | 5.46 (3.40) | 0.865 |
| • Mobile Phone | 6.67 (4.21) | 6.62 (3.99) | 6.69 (4.33) | 0.498 | 5.82 (3.89) | 7.02 (4.51) | <0.001** |
| • Television | 4.78 (3.64) | 4.99 (3.61) | 4.56 (2.89) | 0.123 | 5.12 (3.78) | 4.32 (3.23) | <0.001** |
| • Tablet/iPad | 1.23 (1.16) | 0.99 (0.88) | 1.69 (1.20) | 0.003 * | 1.22 (1.08) | 1.24 (1.20) | 0.539 |
| • Game consoles | 0.58 (0.12) | 0.61 (0.14) | 0.58 (0.09) | 0.821 | 0.62 (0.10) | 0.57 (0.15) | 0.291 |
| Time spent on screen-based activities c | |||||||
| • Studying/doing homework | 2.57 (1.32) | 2.52 (1.36) | 2.67 (1.27) | 0.605 | 2.64 (1.30) | 2.52 (1.34) | 0.684 |
| • Using social networking sites | 1.57 (0.93) | 1.01 (0.87) | 2.00 (1.01) | 0.036 * | 1.05 (0.87) | 2.00 (0.99) | <0.001 ** |
| • Playing games | 1.93 (0.88) | 1.98 (0.82) | 1.78 (0.92) | 0.099 | 2.01 (0.85) | 1.88 (0.90) | 0.158 |
| • Watching movies/YouTube | 2.24 (1.16) | 2.17 (1.12) | 2.39 (1.16) | 0.219 | 2.21 (1.15) | 2.25 (1.16) | 0.312 |
| • Reading/listening to music | 0.56 (0.22) | 0.38 (0.20) | 0.72 (0.21) | < 0.001 ** | 0.48 (0.20) | 0.64 (0.24) | 0.002* |
| Total screen time/weekday (minutes) | 442.29 (201.5) | 438.34 (178.2) | 451.12 (214.4) | 0.645 | 448.45(167.34) | 431.11 (221.12) | 0.108 |
| Total screen time/weekend (minutes) | 379.90 (178.2) | 398.22 (166.8) | 365.30 (181.1) | 0.612 | 369.98(166.23) | 385.20 (184.10) | 0.118 |
| Screen addiction behaviors d | |||||||
| • I can’t imagine going anywhere without my mobile devices | 2.01 (1.18) | 1.87 (1.25) | 2.30 (0.95) | 0.083 | 1.73 (1.18) | 2.33 (1.19) | 0.009 * |
| • Screen time takes up a majority of my leisure time | 2.68 (1.10) | 2.65 (1.20) | 2.76 (0.93) | 0.638 | 2.52 (1.08) | 2.88 (1.12) | 0.099 |
| • I use screens for a longer duration than is good for me | 2.17 (1.20) | 2.14 (1.28) | 2.24 (1.03) | 0.690 | 2.05 (1.22) | 2.31 (1.17) | 0.276 |
| • I prefer socializing online | 1.21 (1.13) | 1.15 (1.04) | 1.33 (1.16) | 0.543 | 1.20 (1.10) | 1.21 (1.12) | 0.983 |
| Sleep pattern using PSQI | |||||||
| Subjective sleep quality | 0.84 (0.53) | 0.80 (0.50) | 0.86 (0.56) | 0.218 | 0.77 (0.56) | 0.87 (0.46) | 0.044 * |
| Sleep Latency | 1.10 (1.05) | 0.87 (0.55) | 1.58 (1.09) | < 0.001 ** | 1.05 (0.98) | 1.12 (1.06) | 0.714 |
| Sleep Duration | 0.97 (0.68) | 0.98 (0.66) | 0.97 (0.69) | 0.443 | 0.85 (0.66) | 1.10 (0.71) | 0.836 |
| Sleep Efficiency | 0.89 (0.12) | 0.91 (0.11) | 0.88 (0.13) | 0.631 | 0.88 (0.10) | 0.89 (0.12) | 0.479 |
| Sleep Disturbances | 0.77 (0.28) | 0.82 (0.21) | 0.73 (0.29) | 0.335 | 0.82 (0.25) | 0.79 (0.29) | 0.492 |
| Daytime Dysfunction | 0.88 (0.41) | 0.65 (0.30) | 1.12 (0.55) | 0.027 * | 0.85 (0.40) | 0.92 (0.42) | 0.192 |
| Global PSQI score | 5.45 (3.21) | 5.21 (2.97) | 5.78 (3.30) | 0.011 * | 5.03 (3.02) | 5.82 (3.10) | 0.036 * |
| Mean Global PSQI score > 5 (n%) | 682 (52.5) | 340 (49.1) | 342 (56.4) | 0.008 * | 360 (49.7) | 322 (56.1) | 0.021 * |
| Depression symptoms using PHQ-2 | |||||||
| Little pleasure in doing things | 1.24 (0.65) | 1.27 (0.59) | 1.23 (0.72) | 0.992 | 0.89 (0.59) | 1.58 (0.68) | <0.001 ** |
| Feeling down, depressed or hopeless | 0.64 (0.33) | 0.63 (0.30) | 0.64 (0.34) | 0.712 | 0.62 (0.28) | 0.65 (0.35) | 0.760 |
| Mean PHQ-2 score ≥ 3 (n%) | 111 (8.6) | 58 (8.4) | 53 (8.7) | 0.847 | 43 (5.9) | 68 (11.8) | 0.002 * |
*p <0.05,
** p < 0.001.
Significant measures are highlighted.
Abbreviations: PA, Physical Activity, PE, Physical Education. PSQI, Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index. PHQ, Patient Health Questionnaire.
a Eating habits- Frequency options-0-7.
b Snacking pattern- Healthy snack items (sandwich/sprouts/popcorn), High sugar foods (Chocolates/Cakes/Pastries/Ice cream), High fat foods (Fried Indian snacks, such as samosa/vadapav), High salt foods (Hakka noodles/fried rice/Manchurian), Fast foods (wafers/chips/French fries/Burger/pizza).
c Time spent in screen-based activities- Responses, < 30 min/d to > 4 h/d, scored from 0 to 4.
d Screen addiction was assessed on a five-point Likert scale (strongly disagree to strongly agree), scored 0 to 4.