COVID-19 and social isolation: the consequences of not exercising for older adults’ health

• Published in: Motriz : Revista de Educação Física. Unesp 2020, Vol.26 (4)
• Main Authors: Barbosa, Bruno Teixeira, Filho, Edson Meneses da Silva, Santos, Amilton da Cruz, Brasileiro-Santos, Maria do Socorro
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: coronavirus; elderly; exercise; health; SPORT SCIENCES
• ISSN: 1980-6574; 1980-6574
• DOI: 10.1590/s1980-65742020000400170

Abstract COVID-19 pandemic has required social isolation to prevent the virus from spreading. Initially, the elderly were the most affected by the novel coronavirus. However, the virus spread out worldwide, affecting all age groups. The elderly are commonly affected by several chronic diseases, and as a consequence of social isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the community-based exercise programs, which usually provide health and well-being to the elderly, have stopped their activities to avoid the virus to spread out; so, the elderly kept taking medicines but stopped exercising, which must impair their health and increase demand from the public health system. In this sense, the physical education professional is essential to providing safe approaches to the elderly who are not able to enroll in community-based exercise programs but need to exercise to improve their health. This article aims to discuss the consequences of not exercising in older adults’ health during the social isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic; still, we intend to present adjunct strategies to allow the elderly to exercise even socially isolated.