Mental Health and Diet Changes During the COVID19 Pandemic in Tunisia: a Lockdown Story

Background/Aims: The World Health Organization declared SARS-COV2 corona virus outbreak as global pandemic in March 2020. As consequence, and to protect theirs populations and manage as much as possible the health care system, several restrictive measures were imposed by number of countries, including Tunisia. Lockdown was the main and the most uncomfortable restriction. The present study aimed to evaluate the physical and mental impact of the lockdown on active Tunisians adults. Methods: Our study was carried out within a company of 264 workers both in factory and in office. Periodic medical checkout was performed to the employee before and after the lockdown complemented with a survey to evaluate lifestyle changes. Results: Our main finding demonstrates a consequent weight gain of our population, especially in the age range of 25-35 years old workers. This phenomenon was a consequence of an increase of food consumption, sedentarity and reduction of physical activities. In more, the lockdown affected psychologically the population with the increase of smoking, sleeping perturbations and anxiety. Conclusion: our data confirm the physical and mental health concern of the lockdown adopted in Tunisia after Covid19 waves. The main consequences were weight gain and psychological worries of a population of employees. These observations encourage us to alarm authorities about the unsuspected negative effects of the lockdown on active adults.