The impacts of the corona pandemic on the health of Switzerland’s population

What corona is doing to us

It’s been about a year now since the corona pandemic started. Since then, we’ve all been stuck in this unprecedented situation with our insecurities, fears, worries, and above all, with so many restrictions. Are you also slowly becoming fed up and would prefer never to hear anything about corona again? Would you prefer it if the word corona made us all think of the Mexican beer, like we did in 2019? There are many of us in this boat. We’re all fed up, our patience is wearing thin, and we are all fervently longing for some normality.

Although in 2019 – the before times – we may have frequently complained about our daily routines and wished for a little more excitement in our lives, we now yearn for that daily routine with surprising intensity. We want to go to work in the morning like “before”, get wound up every day about the traffic jams and the other drivers again, arrive in the office and discover that there’s no more coffee because your colleague opposite is just enjoying the last cup. How lovely these little daily annoyances were, you may be thinking right now, as you work from home, alone at your desk, with a cup of good coffee in your hand. As you can see, the current situation does not only have its downside. Because you work at home, your coffee is only for you, or maybe you share it with your partner, family or the people in your residential community, but definitely not with a team of 20 or more people.

However, many people are also enjoying the upsides of the current situation – the corona pandemic is no longer just a burden, as several studies from the last year demonstrate.

Quality of life during the corona pandemic

Our quality of life and health are influenced by many determinants. In a crisis like the corona pandemic, other specific factors come into play, such as the perceived threat from the spread of the virus, the severity of the covid-19 disease or the effects of the prescribed measures. In addition, during the pandemic, our wellbeing has also been affected both by our personal situations and by social and personal resources.

According to the COVID-19 Social Monitor, the quality of life of the adult Swiss people questioned between early April and early November 2020 was at a high level for the majority, despite the corona crisis. In lockdown (April to May 2020) and at the start of the second wave at the beginning of November 2020, at least 85% of those questioned even admitted to very good quality of life and (very) good general health in each case. While this proportion rose to around 90% in the summer, a slightly decreasing tendency in the subjectively perceived quality of life was observed from the end of September 2020.
Although the crisis in 2020 did not negatively impact the perceived quality of life or general state of health for the majority of the Swiss respondents, a smaller but non-negligible group (approximately 15% for the November survey) reported a less good or even poor quality of life during the pandemic.
Overall, most studies concluded that the exceptional situation was becoming a burden for more people. However, even the changed situation had several positive consequences. We will showcase the spectrum and variety of the effects using the following two selected examples.

Lockdown and work-life balance

What has your work-life balance looked like since the pandemic began? Cast your thoughts back to 2019 – how happy were you with your job then? Now come back to 2020, and on into 2021, to the here and now. Ask yourself again: “How happy are you right now with your work-life balance?”
Are you a bit stunned because you thought of many positive things throughout and you are happy with your work-life balance despite the current situation? Don’t worry, that’s normal. It’s just the same for many other people in Switzerland.
A longitudinal study comparing data measured during lockdown in 2020 with investigations from 2019 was able to show that even work-life balance generally improved during lockdown, as did other aspects of professional commitment and job satisfaction. This is not just true for people working from home, but overall. The study found that workload issues such as overload or time pressure were in many cases reduced and professional resources such as social support, autonomy and development opportunities had increased. It is interesting that these values dropped again after lockdown in spring 2020, but still remained above the baseline. The study found that the groups of people who experienced primarily negative effects on their work-life balance during lockdown particularly included people with caring responsibilities in the household, such as families with small children or relatives in need of care and single parents. These groups of people were exposed to severe multiple stresses during lockdown.

Intergenerational relationships during the corona pandemic

The current data in the “Generation Barometer” study are based on a national survey from the beginning of September 2020, and the results on life satisfaction match those of other studies from the time before the pandemic. The studies demonstrated that the over-75s boasted the greatest life satisfaction of all age groups. By contrast, the current data clearly show a lack of hope among young adults. In September 2020, 42% of them admitted that their lives were lacking in hope and confidence. The study, however, indicates that the corona pandemic is far from being the sole cause of this state of mind. According to the statements of the young adults surveyed, the pandemic has strengthened these feelings.
The effects of the corona crisis on the relationship between generations are assessed differently: while around a third (32%) of those surveyed assumed that the pandemic negatively affected intergenerational relationships, 16% felt that the effects of the pandemic on the relationship between generations was primarily positive and 26% felt it was neutral.

Stress levels during the corona pandemic

The results of a national survey as part of the Swiss Corona Stress Study showed that, in spring 2020, barely half of participants felt more stressed during lockdown that before the corona crisis. The key factors in the increase in stress included stress caused by changes in education or work as well as stress due to childcare and a restricted social life. At the same time, around 26% of those surveyed during lockdown felt less stressed than they did before the pandemic broke out.
The Swiss Corona Stress Study’s most recent survey, in November 2020, showed that approximately 47% of participants reported an increase in stress levels and 12% a decrease compared to the situation before the second covid-19 wave in September 2020.

Lonely in a crowd – loneliness in the corona pandemic

Loneliness is one of the most significant risk factors for mental health – even under normal conditions. Feelings of loneliness have increased during the covid-19 pandemic. Various studies show that this strongly correlates with the extent of the restrictions at the time and people’s personal life situations. During lockdown in spring 2020, more than 8% of those surveyed admitted feeling lonely (very) often. This number dropped to approximately 3% when measures were relaxed in the summer.
The results of the COVID-19 Social Monitor show a fresh increase in the autumn, to 7%. Despite increased feelings of loneliness in the population during the pandemic, the findings also show that most people have at least one person whom they trust and whom they can talk to during the crisis. Also, the vast majority of those surveyed would approach someone close to them if they appeared to be desperate.

Population groups with the highest psychological stress

BAG’s Working Paper 52, published in January 2021, found that the mental health of a wide range of population groups is clearly particularly vulnerable during the pandemic. Various studies show that people with a pre-existing psychiatric diagnosis generally suffer from higher stress levels and increased psychological stress than others during the pandemic. Furthermore, different studies show that people who live alone or are socially isolated in the pandemic suffer from greater psychological stress. Especially during lockdown, people who live alone were more strongly affected by loneliness. Similarly, current scientific results indicate that people who look after or care for family members, including young carers, reported greater psychological stress during the corona pandemic. It must be emphasised, however, that “greater psychological stress” is not the same thing as a psychiatric diagnosis or psychological problems.
Regarding age groups, current study results indicate that the effects of the pandemic are causing greater psychological stress in younger people (particularly the under 30s) than in older people. Causes cited include the measures imposed such as the schools closing, restrictions on going out, a lack of friendships during lockdown or uncertain professional or educational prospects. For the elderly, pre-existing health conditions, the lack of social integration and isolation as well as fears of poor-quality treatment in the event of supply shortages all played an important role in the extent of the psychological stress experienced. In addition, the COVID-19 Social Monitor shows that loneliness in older people was a big problem not only during lockdown but also towards the end of last year. The results of this survey round in early November 2020 show that: over 50% of those surveyed admitted to missing companionship, around 25% felt excluded and almost 40% felt isolated.

Banana bread and fitness challenges – how has the pandemic changed our food and exercise behaviour?

Has covid made you into a sports junkie or have you practically become one with your sofa? How much banana bread have you baked during lockdown?
The M.I.S. Trend study examined the food and exercise behaviour of the Swiss population during lockdown in spring 2020. Changes were observed in both of these areas, above all in the under 45s. By contrast, people over 60 changed their life habits less during lockdown. Regarding exercise habits, 22% of adults surveyed in the COVID-19 Social Monitor admitted that they have taken less exercise during lockdown compared to the before times. At the same time, 7% said that the pandemic had had the opposite effect on their exercise behaviour and that they were exercising more in lockdown than before.
A small but significant number of approximately 3% of the Swiss population admitted that they did not leave their house or flat for a week in the early days of lockdown.
During lockdown in spring 2020, children’s exercise behaviour changed in line with that of adults. Approximately 22% of children took considerably less exercise according to their parents’ estimations and 7% considerably more than before the pandemic.
It is positive that exercise behaviour sharply improved over lockdown and principally since restrictions were eased at the end of May 2020. Regarding the second covid-19 wave in autumn 2020, physical inactivity increased slightly again, but the seasonal effect can also explain this.

The food habits of children and adults in Switzerland did not change markedly during the pandemic. The positive side of the corona crisis is that many people discovered or re-discovered their cooking skills during lockdown. Are you one of them?
The people surveyed in the M.I.S. Trend study admitted that they cooked at home more often and devoted more time to meal preparation. Furthermore, during lockdown in spring 2020, more vegetables and fruit were consumed, as well as more home-made bread and sugary and salty snacks.

It is becoming clear that the corona crisis has had a positive side throughout, despite the stresses and strains. We will give you a few more tips here that could help you to cope better with the current situation, to ensure that you are well and feel well in the near future, and can enjoy life under the current circumstances.

  • Physical activity: try to exercise regularly, at least once per day. Exercising outside in the fresh air is not just good for your mental health, but also strengthens your immune system.
  • Positive thinking: pay attention to your thoughts and try to focus as much as possible on the positive things in your day-to-day life.
  • Hobbies: make time for your hobbies. Be creative, learn something new or spend time on things that you’ve wanted to do for a long time, whether that is, for example, creating digital photo albums, viewing old slides or reading books that have waited ages on your shelves.
  • Nurturing relationships: the longer physical distance remains necessary, the more important social closeness becomes. Swap information and experiences with your friends and family – digitally, via video call, instead of in person. Talk to your nearest and dearest about your stresses and strains and share your worries. This may help you to handle the situation better.
  • Routines: we humans are creatures of habit, but the pandemic has disrupted all of our usual routines. For many, daily life looks rather different from normal, and that is why you should try to adopt new routines. However small and seemingly insignificant to outsiders, routines give us security. So make sure that you adopt small routines in your daily life that give you structure, security and stability.
  • Small joys in your daily life: consciously take at least 5 minutes in the day for yourself. Do something nice for you and take care of yourself.
  • Use social media sensibly: pay attention to your social media consumption. Get your information about the pandemic from serious sources such as the Zug Canton website and the BAG.
  • Ask for and accept help: if, despite everything, you still don’t feel so good, then confide in someone close to you and get professional help as quickly as you can.

If you enjoyed this article, then the articles “Living in the office”, “Emotions: the corona paradox”, “Job and family – how can I juggle everything?” and “We can do this!” may also interest you.

 

References:
Bundesamt für Gesundheit (BAG) (2020). Faktenblatt: Psychische Gesundheit in Zeiten von Corona.
Bühler, G., Craviolini, J., Krähenbühl, D. et al. (2020). Generational Barometer 2020. Berner Generationenhaus in Zusammenarbeit mit SOTOMO. Bern and Zürich.
COVID-19 Social Monitor, Welle 11 (2020). https://csm.netlify.app/post/trend (Zugriff: 16.02.2021).
Fritschi, T. (2020). Arbeitsalltag in Corona-Zeiten: das Stimmungsbild – Barometer gute Arbeit.
Höglinger, M. & Heiniger, S. (2020). Verhaltensänderungen im Lockdown und persönliche Herausforderungen. Evaluations and data from the COVID-19 Social Monitor for Gesundheitsförderung Schweiz; Final Report. Winterthur, 25 November 2020.
Kessler, C. & Guggenbühl, L. (2021). Auswirkungen der Corona-Pandemie auf gesundheitsbezogene Belastungen und Ressourcen der Bevölkerung. Selected research outcomes 2020 for Switzerland. Working paper 52. Bern and Lausanne: Gesundheitsförderung Schweiz.
M.I.S. TREND (2020). Study of food habits and physical activity in the Swiss population during the period of measures imposed by the Federal Council aiming to curb the spread of Covid-19. Conducted by the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO), in collaboration with the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) and the Federal Office for National Economic Supply (FONES). 1 October 2020, Lausanne.
Stocker, D., Jäggi, J., Liechti, L. et al. (2020). Der Einfluss der COVID-19-Pandemie auf die psychische Gesundheit der Schweizer Bevölkerung und die psychiatrisch-psychotherapeutische Versorgung in der Schweiz. First interim report. Bern: Bundesamt für Gesundheit.

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