@Article{info:doi/10.2196/50189,
author="Le, Lan T H
and Hoang, Thi Ngoc Anh
and Nguyen, Tan T
and Dao, Tien D
and Do, Binh N
and Pham, Khue M
and Vu, Vinh H
and Pham, Linh V
and Nguyen, Lien T H
and Nguyen, Hoang C
and Tran, Tuan V
and Nguyen, Trung H
and Nguyen, Anh T
and Nguyen, Hoan V
and Nguyen, Phuoc B
and Nguyen, Hoai T T
and Pham, Thu T M
and Le, Thuy T
and Nguyen, Thao T P
and Tran, Cuong Q
and Quach, Ha-Linh
and Nguyen, Kien T
and Duong, Tuyen Van",
title="Sex Differences in Clustering Unhealthy Lifestyles Among Survivors of COVID-19: Latent Class Analysis",
journal="JMIR Public Health Surveill",
year="2024",
month="Apr",
day="2",
volume="10",
pages="e50189",
keywords="sex difference; cluster; lifestyle behavior; COVID-19 recovery; latent class analysis; sex; unhealthy; lifestyle; adult; long COVID-19; infected; survivor; public health; intervention; promote; well-being; COVID-19; adults; mobile phone",
abstract="Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the significance of adopting healthy lifestyles to mitigate the risk of severe outcomes and long-term consequences. Objective: This study focuses on assessing the prevalence and clustering of 5 unhealthy lifestyle behaviors among Vietnamese adults after recovering from COVID-19, with a specific emphasis on sex differences. Methods: The cross-sectional data of 5890 survivors of COVID-19 in Vietnam were analyzed from December 2021 to October 2022. To examine the sex differences in 5 unhealthy lifestyle behaviors (smoking, drinking, unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and sedentary behavior), the percentages were plotted along with their corresponding 95{\%} CI for each behavior. Latent class analysis was used to identify 2 distinct classes of individuals based on the clustering of these behaviors: the ``less unhealthy'' group and the ``more unhealthy'' group. We examined the sociodemographic characteristics associated with each identified class and used logistic regression to investigate the factors related to the ``more unhealthy'' group. Results: The majority of individuals (male participants: 2432/2447, 99.4{\%} and female participants: 3411/3443, 99.1{\%}) exhibited at least 1 unhealthy behavior, with male participants being more susceptible to multiple unhealthy behaviors. The male-to-female ratio for having a single behavior was 1.003, but it escalated to 25 for individuals displaying all 5 behaviors. Male participants demonstrated a higher prevalence of combining alcohol intake with sedentary behavior (949/2447, 38.8{\%}) or an unhealthy diet (861/2447, 35.2{\%}), whereas female participants tended to exhibit physical inactivity combined with sedentary behavior (1305/3443, 37.9{\%}) or an unhealthy diet (1260/3443, 36.6{\%}). Married male participants had increased odds of falling into the ``more unhealthy'' group compared to their single counterparts (odds ratio [OR] 1.45, 95{\%} CI 1.14-1.85), while female participants exhibited lower odds (OR 0.65, 95{\%} CI 0.51-0.83). Female participants who are underweight showed a higher likelihood of belonging to the ``more unhealthy'' group (OR 1.11, 95{\%} CI 0.89-1.39), but this was not observed among male participants (OR 0.6, 95{\%} CI 0.41-0.89). In both sexes, older age, dependent employment, high education, and obesity were associated with higher odds of being in the ``more unhealthy'' group. Conclusions: The study identified notable sex differences in unhealthy lifestyle behaviors among survivors of COVID-19. Male survivors are more likely to engage in unhealthy behaviors compared to female survivors. These findings emphasize the importance of tailored public health interventions targeting sex-specific unhealthy behaviors. Specifically, addressing unhealthy habits is crucial for promoting post--COVID-19 health and well-being. ",
issn="2369-2960",
doi="10.2196/50189",
url="https://publichealth.jmir.org/2024/1/e50189",
url="https://doi.org/10.2196/50189",
url="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38564248"
}