Lakehead University is getting a $25,000 grant to study how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted student’s physical activity and mental health.
Professor Ian Newhouse and Associate Professor Erin Pearson, both from Lakehead University’s School of Kinesiology, will be heading the research.
Dr. Pearson explains she’s noticed trends in university students’ physical activity since the start of the pandemic.
“Interestingly, what we’ve seen is that some people have actually increased their physical activity during COVID to cope, or as a form of stress release, whereas others have had their levels decline or stay at zero,” she notes.
Dr. Pearson feels this is an important subject to study.
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Lakehead University researchers have been awarded $25,000 from Bell Let's Talk to examine how COVID-19 has impacted students' physical activity behaviour and mental health. The grant is part of $3 million going to dozens of post-secondary institutions across Canada.
THUNDER BAY Researchers at Lakehead University will use a grant from
Bell Let s Talk to study how COVID-19 has affected physical activity and the mental health of post-secondary students.
Faculty members Ian Newhouse and Erin Pearson of the School of Kinesiology are leading the project.
According to a news release from LU, COVID-19 restrictions have negatively impacted the frequency and modes of physical activity that students engage in. While a strong link has been established between mental health and physical activity, the question of how to best promote physical activity during a pandemic needs further exploration, Newhouse said.
The study is aimed at identifying strategies that can be used to develop future programming at Lakehead.