The predictors of health-enhancing physical activity among working women in Singapore two years into COVID-19: a cross-sectional study

Sci Rep. 2022 Dec 13;12(1):21493. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-26022-3.

Abstract

Physical activity (PA) levels may have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, these changes are not well understood. The study aimed to describe the PA level and examine the predictive factors of a health-enhancing PA level among working women in Singapore two years into the COVID-19 pandemic. We undertook a cross-sectional descriptive correlational study. Three hundred participants were recruited and completed the online questionnaire between October and November 2021. In the PA analysis of 217 participants, only 32.7% of the participants achieved a health-enhancing PA level, while 44.7% of the total sample sat for 7 h or more daily. In the univariate analysis, occupation, nationality, monthly income, and average daily sitting hours were significantly associated with a high PA level. The current mode of work, living arrangement, and health-promoting lifestyle profile II_physical activity score remained significant in both univariate and multivariate analyses. Participants who worked from home and stayed with their families were less likely to achieve a health-enhancing PA level than those who had a regular workplace and did not stay with their families. Working women with a health-promoting physically active lifestyle were likelier to achieve a health-enhancing PA level. The long daily sitting time and suboptimal health-enhancing PA participation underscore the need for health promotion initiatives for working women.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • COVID-19* / epidemiology
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Exercise
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Pandemics
  • Sedentary Behavior
  • Singapore / epidemiology
  • Women, Working*