The Wellness Center's Blog

Severe COVID-19 Defense: Using Exercise to Help Support Your Immunity

By: Dexter Wellness Staff

July 9, 2021, 10:00 am - Categories: Fitness Tips, News

Exercise has been shown to have preventative effects on diseases and conditions such as heart disease, cancer, dementia and more. As we learn more about COVID-19, exercise is proving to help provide immunity support against this novel virus.

The British Journal of Sports Medicine has published a recent study “Physical inactivity is associated with a higher risk for severe COVID-19 outcomes: a study in 48,440 adult patients” that suggests that routine activity may help protect people who get COVID-19 from becoming seriously ill.

The researchers analyzed data from adults over 18 who had confirmed COVID-19 between January and October 2020. All had been patients at Kaiser Permanente for at least six months before testing positive for COVID-19, and had at least three Exercise Vital Sign measurements on file.

The entire group was divided into three categories:

1. Those who consistently met activity guidelines of over 150 minutes per week at all three measurements

2. Those who were consistently inactive with only 0 to 10 minutes per week at all three measurements

3. Those who were active in the range of 11 to 149 minutes per week, or who had variability in their three measurements.

People who were consistently inactive had a significantly higher risk of hospitalization, ICU admission, and death after getting COVID-19 than those who were active for at least 150 minutes per week. Those who were active for over 10 minutes per week had some protection against severe illness or death from COVID-19 — though not as much as those who got the full 150 minutes.

Read more details about this study HERE.

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