How has the pandemic affected mental and physical health

Health is an extremely topical issue because of the coronavirus pandemic. Even those who haven’t contracted the illness have had their mental and physical health impacted by the outbreak for a whole manner of reasons, according to the Tej Kohli Foundation, with many indirect health issues being caused.

Fitness Levels

Coronavirus has caused two extremes to occur in the population; people have either become exercise addicts or they have adopted an incredibly sedentary lifestyle. Lockdown forced everyone to stay indoors, resulting in their fitness levels dropping over several months. Even now, with restrictions lifted in many ways, some of the population is still struggling to recover from muscle wastage, reduced lung capacity and increased heart rates.

Depression and anxiety

Everyone has been impacted by the pandemic in one way or another, but some people are struggling more than others to manage their stress-levels surrounding it. This makes sense given the widespread news coverage and fears over an economic recession.

As a result, many have fallen into despair or become overwrought with worry, leading to an increase in reported causes of depression and anxiety in the UK. Mental health organisations have been overwhelmed by the surge of demand for their services.

Holiday hunger

Children were absent from school from early March because of coronavirus. Not only has this impacted on their education but also their access to food. Parents from impoverished backgrounds rely on free school meals to get by because they cannot afford to feed themselves and their children otherwise.

This results in a thing called ‘holiday hunger’, where families are starving during the months that schools are closed. The pandemic has made this health issue more prevalent than ever before. Fortunately, charities like the Tej Kohli Foundation are helping with the supply and distribution of meals for the affected families.

Attitudes towards food

Many people gained weight during the lockdown, and officials are concerned because of coronavirus and the associated health issues. As a result, the government has started to roll out policies to help the population lose weight again.

In doing so, this can negatively impacted people’s attitudes towards food. Some people have started to feel guilty and ashamed for eating, resulting in a possible spike in recorded eating disorders in the UK. Luckily, there are mental health charities like BEAT who are offering those affected with support.

Check-ups

For the past few months, there have been limited face to face GP appointments, with some people afraid to ‘bother’ the GP with anything other than Covid issues. There is a concern, for example, that somebody with a suspicious lump may not get it investigated, or that investigations are delayed in general.