An evaluation of inherent sedentary behavior in college students in Kerala

Abstract

India was among the first countries to impose a nationwide lockdown due to Coronavirus Pandemic. Social contact was minimized, e-commerce boomed, education became online, and food and groceries were delivered home. A sedentary lifestyle resulted in increased screen time and changes in sleep patterns. All of this leads to mental and physical ailments like depression, obesity and heart problems. This research aimed to observe and analyze Physical Activity (PA) levels, Sedentary Behavior (SD), and Sleep Quality and Sleep Duration of college students in Kerala. The research was cross-sectional in nature. Purposive sampling and snowball sampling were used to find respondents. A total of 81 respondents in the age group of 18 to 22 participated in the survey, of which 56.8% were Male and 43.2% were Female. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), the Sedentary Behavior Questionnaire (SBQ) and the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used for measuring the variables. One-tailed z-test was used to test the hypothesis. The results of the study showed good levels of physical activity meeting the Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET) guideline. Sedentary lifestyle was inherent amongst the participants. Majority had a healthy sleep duration but only a small percentage of them had good sleep quality. Thus, the results of this study show that college students in Kerala have a sedentary lifestyle, which might be due to the impact that COVID-19 had on already existing traditional systems.