Physical Activity of Children and Adolescents during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Scoping Review

Abstract

To counteract the COVIC-19 pandemic, many governments have introduced social distancing measures. While these restrictions helped contain the virus, it had adverse effects on individuals’ mental and physical health—especially children. The aim of the present study is to review the evidence on the effects of COVID-19 restrictions on children’s physical activity and their determinants. A scoping review was conducted in the databases PubMed, Web of Science, SportDiscus, and BISp-Surf. Inclusion criteria were empirical and peer-reviewed studies, youth samples, investigation of COVID-19 restrictions, and investigating changes and/or determinants of physical activity before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Risk of bias was assessed using the checklist by Downs and Black. The search resulted in 1672 studies, of which 84 studies were included in the analysis. The results highlighted a decrease in physical activity during the pandemic, ranging between −10.8 min/day and −91 min/day. If an increase was detected, it related to unstructured and outdoor activities. The main determinants of children’s physical activity during the pandemic were age, gender, socioeconomic background, and the outdoor environment. The results imply that governments need to consider the negative effects that restrictive measures have on children’s physical activity and act to ensure high levels of physical activity.