Imagine it or not, there is a straightforward approach to minimize the chance of developing long Covid. A latest study found that a healthy lifestyle before COVID-19 infection could lower the chance of lingering symptoms. 

Published within the JAMA Internal Medicine journal Monday, the study reported that easy adherence to a healthy lifestyle before infection with SARS-CoV-2 could significantly reduce the chance of post-COVID-19 conditions (PCC). 

The researchers checked out 1,981 women who reported a positive Covid test from April 2020 to November 2021 while noting their lifestyle decisions. The participants were a part of the Nurses’ Health Study II — a program surveying greater than 100,000 nurses within the U.S. since 1989. 

Compared with those that didn’t follow a healthy lifestyle before their COVID-19 infections, participants living healthy had about half the chance of developing long Covid symptoms. 

The team found that ladies with a healthy pre-infection lifestyle had a lower risk of PCC for 4 weeks or longer. They noted that the associations were mostly driven by healthy body weight and adequate sleep. 

“On this prospective cohort study, pre-infection healthy lifestyle was related to a substantially lower risk of PCC. Future research should investigate whether lifestyle interventions may reduce risk of developing PCC or mitigate symptoms amongst individuals with PCC or possibly other postinfection syndromes,” they concluded. 

Previous research already linked lifestyle aspects with the chance of getting severe COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, or death. The brand new study prolonged the impact of lifestyle aspects on the possibilities of developing long Covid. 

“Prior to now many years, scientists have gathered evidence that [a] healthy lifestyle is sweet for overall health, ” lead study writer Siwen Wang, a research fellow within the Department of Nutrition on the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said in a press release, as per CNN. 

Wang continued, “Nevertheless, within the U.S. for instance, 70% of the population should not have a healthy body weight and 30% do stay awake enough. Findings from this study suggest that easy lifestyle changes, similar to having adequate sleep, could also be helpful for the prevention of long COVID.”