Dietary Habits, Physical Activity, and Sleep Quality in COVID-19 Patients in Primary Care Centers

Background: Since its emergence in December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic, triggered by SARS-CoV-2, has posed an unprecedented global challenge, deeply affecting public health and various aspects of daily life. The primary objective of this study was to explore how lifestyle factors impact the recovery and overall well-being of patients, highlighting the need to integrate improvement strategies into treatment and recovery plans. Methods: We adopted a quantitative descriptive cross-sectional design, selecting a non-probabilistic sample of convenience comprising 345 adults diagnosed with COVID-19. Participants, aged between 18 and 60 years, were evenly distributed across highland and coastal regions. We used questionnaires to assess eating habits, physical activity (using the IPAQ), and sleep quality (using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index). Results: It was found that 52.8% of participants had inadequate eating habits, while 94.2% exhibited low physical activity. Additionally, 60.9% of subjects reported poor sleep quality. No statistically significant relationship was found between eating habits and physical activity (p > 0.234), nor between these factors and sleep quality (p > 0.169). Conclusions: The research reveals a concerning trend towards inadequate eating habits and low levels of physical activity among COVID-19 patients, which, combined with poor sleep quality, could compromise their recovery and quality of life.