Comparison of physical activity, internet addiction, and healthy lifestyle behavior of Turkish University students before and during the early COVID-19 Pandemic

Aims: This study aims to compare the physical activity, internet addiction and healthy lifestyle behaviors of university students before and during the coronavirus pandemic. Methods: This study, which included university students, was carried out in two stages observational, cross-over, and before-after evaluation. After the physical and sociodemographic characteristics of 335 university students were recorded in the first stage before the pandemic (February-May 2019), The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the Internet Addiction Scale (IAS) and Healthy Lifestyle Behavior Scale (HLBS) were applied in the study. The second part of the study consists of repeating questionnaires online with 205 students during the pandemic (June 2020). Results: It was determined that there was a decrease in the levels of vigorous (MD: 28.4; p<0.001) and moderate (MD: 47.7; p<0.001) physical activity of the participants, and an increase in the time they spent sitting (MD: -178.1; p<0.001), internet addiction (MD: 31.7; p<0.001), and HLBS total score (MD: -6.82; p<0.001). Conclusion: It was observed that the pandemic negatively affected physical activity, internet addiction, and healthy lifestyle behavior. It is essential to determine whether these effects continue after the pandemic and to take precautions accordingly.