Association between physical activity and mental health in health professionals in the context of the pandemic: a study in southern Brazil

Objective The aim of the study was to verify the association between physical activity (PA) and mental health among health professionals in southern Brazil. Methods This is a cross-sectional study with 101 workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mental health and PA were assessed using the questionnaires. The association of PA with stress was tested by linear regression, and anxiety and depressive symptoms by Poisson regression. Results The stress was inversely associated with individuals who performed some PA (β: −3.53;95% CI: −6.63;−0.44) and who met the PA recommendations (active) (β: −6.84;95% CI: −12.44;−1.24). Workers who performed some PA (PR: 0.76;95% CI: 0.67;0.86) and were active (PR: 0.75;95% CI: 0.60;0.93) were less likely to have severe symptoms of anxiety. For depression, workers who performed some PA (PR: 0.81;95% CI: 0.71;0.92) and were active (PR: 0.69;95% CI: 0.54;0.88), the probability was also smaller. Conclusions The practice of PA was inversely associated with symptoms of stress, depression, and anxiety.