{"title":"College Student Health-Related Quality of Life Trends Following the COVID-19 Pandemic","authors":"","doi":"10.1016/j.jneb.2024.05.039","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><p>Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) is a comprehensive assessment of one's physical, mental, social, and emotional health. It is essential to assess HRQOL, as it goes beyond isolated measures of health to capture overall well-being.</p></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><p>This study aimed to assess changes in HRQOL in college students following the COVID-19 pandemic.</p></div><div><h3>Study Design, Settings, Participants</h3><p>Independent samples of college students, ages 18-25, completed online surveys assessing demographics and HRQOL at the University of Maine at four time points: February 2019, September 2020, March 2021, and February 2023.</p></div><div><h3>Measurable Outcome/Analysis</h3><p>HRQOL was assessed using the CDC's Healthy Days Core Module, which asks participants to determine how many days in the past 30 days they have experienced specific health variables (eg, anxiety) and how their health status has affected their daily activities. A MANOVA was used to assess differences in HRQOL across time points.</p></div><div><h3>Results</h3><p>Participants (N=2829) demographics were similar during the four timepoints, with average age being 19.9-20.9 years old, majority White (86.9-91.7%), and female (61.7-69.8%). There were significant differences in overall HRQOL across time points, F(21, 7509)=9.948, p<0.001. On average, students felt their physical health was not good for 5.0 days in the past 30 days at the 2019 time point, which dropped to 3.4 days in 2020, then increased to 3.6 days in 2021, and 4.6 days in 2023 (p<0.001). Additionally, students felt worried/tense/anxious 14.7 days in the past 30 days in 2019, which dropped to 12.9 days in 2020, and increased to 14.1 and 14.0 in 2021 and 2023, respectively (p=0.011). Other HRQOL variables followed a similar pattern.</p></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><p>In general, HRQOL measures improved during the height of the pandemic in 2020, and worsened in 2021 and 2023. Future research should aim to qualitatively assess why these changes were observed.</p></div><div><h3>Funding</h3><p>NIFA, University of Maine Agricultural Experiment Station</p></div>","PeriodicalId":50107,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":2.3000,"publicationDate":"2024-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1499404624001398","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"EDUCATION, SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background
Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) is a comprehensive assessment of one's physical, mental, social, and emotional health. It is essential to assess HRQOL, as it goes beyond isolated measures of health to capture overall well-being.
Objective
This study aimed to assess changes in HRQOL in college students following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Study Design, Settings, Participants
Independent samples of college students, ages 18-25, completed online surveys assessing demographics and HRQOL at the University of Maine at four time points: February 2019, September 2020, March 2021, and February 2023.
Measurable Outcome/Analysis
HRQOL was assessed using the CDC's Healthy Days Core Module, which asks participants to determine how many days in the past 30 days they have experienced specific health variables (eg, anxiety) and how their health status has affected their daily activities. A MANOVA was used to assess differences in HRQOL across time points.
Results
Participants (N=2829) demographics were similar during the four timepoints, with average age being 19.9-20.9 years old, majority White (86.9-91.7%), and female (61.7-69.8%). There were significant differences in overall HRQOL across time points, F(21, 7509)=9.948, p<0.001. On average, students felt their physical health was not good for 5.0 days in the past 30 days at the 2019 time point, which dropped to 3.4 days in 2020, then increased to 3.6 days in 2021, and 4.6 days in 2023 (p<0.001). Additionally, students felt worried/tense/anxious 14.7 days in the past 30 days in 2019, which dropped to 12.9 days in 2020, and increased to 14.1 and 14.0 in 2021 and 2023, respectively (p=0.011). Other HRQOL variables followed a similar pattern.
Conclusions
In general, HRQOL measures improved during the height of the pandemic in 2020, and worsened in 2021 and 2023. Future research should aim to qualitatively assess why these changes were observed.
Funding
NIFA, University of Maine Agricultural Experiment Station
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior (JNEB), the official journal of the Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior, is a refereed, scientific periodical that serves as a global resource for all professionals with an interest in nutrition education; nutrition and physical activity behavior theories and intervention outcomes; complementary and alternative medicine related to nutrition behaviors; food environment; food, nutrition, and physical activity communication strategies including technology; nutrition-related economics; food safety education; and scholarship of learning related to these areas.
The purpose of JNEB is to document and disseminate original research and emerging issues and practices relevant to these areas worldwide. The Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior welcomes evidence-based manuscripts that provide new insights and useful findings related to nutrition education research, practice and policy. The content areas of JNEB reflect the diverse interests in nutrition and physical activity related to public health, nutritional sciences, education, behavioral economics, family and consumer sciences, and eHealth, including the interests of community-based nutrition-practitioners. As the Society''s official journal, JNEB also includes policy statements, issue perspectives, position papers, and member communications.