Vaccination and being physically active are associated with a lower risk of long Covid-19, according to research by health and life insurer Discovery.
Long Covid-19 describes an array of persistent health problems that can linger months after an initial coronavirus infection, affecting many different organs and people’s quality of life.
The research combined a survey of beneficiaries of the 19 medical schemes administered by JSE-listed Discovery’s subsidiary Discovery Health with claims data, vaccination status and detailed information about their physical activity before they were diagnosed with Covid-19.
“What we saw in our data is those who had a more severe episode were more likely to report multiple, prolonged, debilitating symptoms, and women were more likely to report these clusters of symptoms. [But] the encouraging thing, and where we provide unique insight, is we can see how protective lifestyle is. Keeping fit, keeping healthy, and being vaccinated not only protect you in the acute phase, but also help you avoid the longer-term complications,” said Discovery Health chief health-care analytics actuary Shirley Collie.
People who had high levels of physical activity before they were diagnosed with Covid-19, exercising for more than 150 minutes a week, were 47% less likely to report four or more lingering symptoms after their initial infection. Those who were moderately physically active, and exercised from 60 to 150 minutes a week, were 36% less likely to report long Covid-19.
Vaccination was associated with a 17% lower risk of long Covid-19.
Discovery’s survey was adapted from a long Covid-19 survey developed by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, which previously published long Covid-19 research on patients admitted to public and private hospitals. It was conducted among people who had survived a confirmed Covid-19 infection between March 2020 and November 2021.
Participants were asked about symptoms they experienced in the week before the survey, and how they managed daily activities. More than 7,000 people responded to the questions on post-Covid-19 symptoms, and more than 5,500 answered questions about daily activities.
The most common symptoms reported by respondents surveyed two to 11 months after recovery, were headaches (31%), breathlessness (14%), dizziness (12%) and lack of concentration (12%).
The survey about daily activities found almost a third reported deterioration in concentration, one in five reported difficulties walking and 16% had eyesight problems.
Analysis of people reporting four or more lingering symptoms after infection found women were 1.76 times more likely to report long Covid-19 symptoms than men and 1.88 times likelier than men to report problems with activities they managed previously. That finding is broadly in line with previous studies.
People with multiple pre-existing conditions, more severe illness, depression and asthma were also likelier to develop long-lasting symptoms.
Discovery’s analysis also found people who had recovered from Covid-19 had a 1.38 times greater risk of developing diabetes, and a 1.11 greater risk of developing hypertension for up to a year after their diagnosis.
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