Objective: To assess changes in daily habits, food choices, and lifestyle of adult Brazilians before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Design: This observational study was carried out with Brazilian adults through an online questionnaire five months after the social distance measures implementation. The McNemar, McNemar-Bowker, and Wilcoxon tests were used to investigate differences before and during the COVID pandemic period, adopting the statistical significance of p <0.05. Setting: Brazil. Participants: 1,368 volunteers aged 18+ years. Results: The volunteers reported a lower frequency of breakfast, morning, and lunch snacks (p<0.05) and a higher frequency of evening snacks and other meal categories during the pandemic period (p<0.05). The results showed an increase in the consumption of bakery products, instant meals and fast-food, while the consumption of vegetables and fruits decreased (p<0.005). There was a significant increase in the frequency of consumption of alcoholic beverages (p<0.001), but a reduction in the dose (p<0.001); increased frequency of smoking (p=0.007); an increase in sleep and screen time in hours, and decrease in physical activity (p<0.001). Conclusions: It was possible to observe an increase in screen time, hours of sleep, smoking, and drinking frequency. On the other hand, there was a reduction in the dose of alcoholic beverages but also in the practice of physical activity. Eating habits also changed, reducing the performance of daytime meals and increasing the performance of nighttime meals. The frequency of consumption of instant meals and fast-food has increased, while consumption of fruits and vegetables has decreased.

Introduction and AimsThe behavioral changes that arose from quarantine due to the COVID-19 pandemic may have impacted the weight of people. This study aims to investigate the incidence and predictors of weight gain during the quarantine period.MethodsAn online survey was performed five months after the social distance measures implementation. Participants recorded their current and usual weight before lockdown. A multivariate logistic regression model was performed.ResultsData on 1334 participants were evaluated (33.6y, 79.8% females), and 58.8% have gained weight (3.0 kg; 0.1 to 30.0 kg). Predictors of weight gain were increased food intake (OR = 5.40); snacking (OR = 2.86); fast food (OR = 1.11); canned products (OR = 1.08); and in physical activity (OR = 0.99) concerning the period before the pandemic; also time spent at work, including household chores (OR = 1.58); evening snack (OR = 1.54); higher frequency of alcoholic beverage intake (OR = 1.59) and dose of alcoholic beverage (OR = 1.11); uncontrolled eating (OR = 1.01), and vegetable intake (OR = 0.92) during the quarantine and physical activity before pandemic period (OR = 0.99).ConclusionMost participants have gained weight during the pandemic because of working changes, lifestyle, eating habits changes, and uncontrolled eating behavior. These results can be useful to encourage changes during future quarantine periods to prevent weight gain.

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Background: The COVID 19 pandemic impacted the health and well-being of different populations around the world. The aim of this study is to investigate the changes in the daily habits of Brazilians before and during two moments of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A longitudinal study in which an online questionnaire (sleeping time, alcohol consumption, smoking, use of screen devices, physical activity, and dietary patterns) was applied at three moments. Results: The frequency of alcohol consumption, smoking, and sleep hours did not change significantly at different times. For the number of alcoholic beverages, there was a reduction in consumption from T0 to T1 and an increase from T1 to T2. There was a significant increase in hours of screen device use from T0 to T1, remaining high at T2. Finally, the level of physical activity in minutes reduced from T0 to T1, returning to base levels at T2. As for eating habits, there was an increase in the frequency of consumption of instant meals, fast food, and sweets at the first moment, with a significant reduction at the second moment. The consumption of legumes, milk and dairy products, bakery products, and meats was higher at T2. Conclusions: Some habits returned to or approached T0 levels. However, other habits remained unchanged, such as screen time and frequency of consumption of some food groups, throughout the last evaluation.