Feasibility of an online, mental health‐informed lifestyle program for people aged 60+ years during the COVID‐19 pandemic

Abstract

Issue addressed: The COVID-19 pandemic and associated social distancing regulations have disproportionally impacted the health of older adults. Lifestyle interventions targeting physical activity, diet and fostering social connection may help to alleviate the potential negative health consequences. This study aimed to determine the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of delivering an online group lifestyle intervention for older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Adults aged 60+, living in Australia were recruited to a single-arm feasibility study of a 6-week program delivered via a private Facebook group between June-August 2020. Facilitators provided motivation and education on weekly topics including goal setting and reducing sedentary behaviour in the form of Facebook posts and group video calls. Primary outcomes included feasibility and acceptability and secondary outcomes included psychological distress, quality of life (AQoL-6D), functioning, loneliness and physical activity (PA) with assessments conducted at baseline, post-intervention and 4-week follow-up. Results: N = 11 participants were recruited and n = 10 (91%) completed the postassessment questionnaires. High acceptability was observed and exploratory analysis from pre-post intervention found evidence of an effect on secondary outcomes. Conclusions: A mental health informed lifestyle program delivered online via Facebook appears feasible and well-accepted among older adults and may help to prevent some of the consequences of inactivity and social isolation associated with the pandemic. So what?: Online lifestyle interventions appear safe and may provide a scalable, costeffective strategy for protecting the physical and mental health of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Counseling for Physical Activity in Adults during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scope Review

“…In addition to representing a majority in all samples, three articles were conducted specifically with female samples [ 14 , 33 , 34 ]. Heterogeneity was identified in relation to the sample characteristics, highlighting four samples composed of participants with insufficient levels of physical activity at the baseline [ 14 , 16 , 22 , 35 ], two samples with cancer survivors [ 32 , 34 ], and two with type II diabetes patients [ 36 , 37 ]. Regarding the objectives of the studies, six articles directed interventions to physical activity [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 38 ], two studies were focused on behavioral change [ 36 , 37 ], two studies investigated a whole lifestyle [ 16 , 22 ], and one study directed actions towards physical activity and behavioral change [ 14 ].…”

“…Heterogeneity was identified in relation to the sample characteristics, highlighting four samples composed of participants with insufficient levels of physical activity at the baseline [ 14 , 16 , 22 , 35 ], two samples with cancer survivors [ 32 , 34 ], and two with type II diabetes patients [ 36 , 37 ]. Regarding the objectives of the studies, six articles directed interventions to physical activity [ 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 38 ], two studies were focused on behavioral change [ 36 , 37 ], two studies investigated a whole lifestyle [ 16 , 22 ], and one study directed actions towards physical activity and behavioral change [ 14 ]. Regarding the research design, the selected studies were classified as randomized controlled trials (n = 4), intervention studies (n = 4), non-randomized controlled trials (n = 1), longitudinal (n = 1), and quasi-experimental (n = 1).…”

“…In this period, it was found that fragile populations, which had multiple comorbidities such as diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases, are more exposed to the severe clinical condition of SARS-CoV-2 [ 21 ]. This way, maintenance of physical activity during the pandemic context has been recommended [ 22 ], as it presents better control over these comorbidities [ 21 ], immunological benefits [ 9 ], and other health-related positive effects [ 15 ].…”

“…Many studies have shown that counseling interventions can be effective strategies for promoting physical activity, have low costs [ 27 ], are replicable, and sustain physical activity for more than 12 months [ 23 ]. However, interventions that help individuals to engage in health-related beneficial behaviors, including physical activity, during the pandemic context are limited [ 22 ].…”

Effectiveness of dietary interventions in mental health treatment: A rapid review of reviews

“…Consistently across reviews, dietary interventions were provided as an adjunctive treatment, however that is more so reflective of the inclusion criteria for the rapid review in that individuals within studies had to have a mental disorder diagnosis. If prevention interventions were also included then it is likely that more stand‐alone dietary and/or lifestyle interventions might have been identified 88,89 …”