In March 2020 the world came to a standstill for most of the planet, and lockdowns and restrictions to deal with COVID-19 drastically altered our daily routines. A new work published in the Journal of Sleep Research that included 7,517 adults from many countries who were surveyed in 2020 reveals that during these months the average levels of sleep quality, quality of life, physical activity and productivity deteriorated. In addition, the average time spent in front of screens was significantly increased while the time spent outdoors was reduced.
The researchers found that the largest reductions in time spent outdoors and in daylight were closely related to impaired well-being and trouble falling asleep. "Our findings suggest that strategies to improve well-being under social constraints should encourage greater exposure to daylight and good sleep," said Maria Korman, a researcher at Ariel University in Israel and lead author of the study.
Reference: Korman et al, 2021. Outdoor daylight exposure and longer sleep promote wellbeing under COVID-19 mandated restrictions Journal of Sleep Research DOI 10.1111 / jsr.13471
