Physical Activity: A Key to Uphold Immune Functions during COVID-19 Pandemic

  • Prafull Kamble Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bibinagar, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Vandana Daulatabad RVM Medical College, Siddipet, Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Anish Singhal Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bibinagar, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Madhusudhan U Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bibinagar, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Vidya S Department of Pediatrics, Malla Reddy Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Nitin Ashok John Department of Physiology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bibinagar, Telangana, INDIA.
  • Jyoti John Department of Biochemistry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Nagpur, Maharashtra, INDIA.
Keywords: Physical activity, Immune functions, COVID-19, Cytokines, Interleukins.

Abstract

The population of industrialized and developing countries has been less physically active during the previous century, either to changes in the type of job or the adoption of new habits owing in part to changes in work demands and the adoption of new sedentary habits. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially proclaimed a pandemic on March 11, 2020, due to the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), which was discovered in December 2019. Social isolation and/or social distance are among the WHO guidelines that must be implemented by governments globally (with exclusions) in order to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2. The sudden onset of a quarantine period, on the other hand, not only implies a rapid change in people’s lifestyles, but it can also have an impact on the health of these isolated people, as it favors impairment in dietary habits, changes in psychosocial behaviour, and reduced levels of physical activity in people of all ages. Increases in anti-inflammatory cytokines produced during exercise may help to limit the post-inflammatory reactions that occur as a result of the exercise-induced damage to the skeletal musculature, as well as inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines linked to the development of pathological conditions. A modest systemic inflammatory response was elicited by moderateintensity resistance exercises, which was characterized, at least in part, by elevations in blood levels of inflammatory cytokines such as IL-1 and TNF-α. The regular production of muscle-derived anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-7, IL-10, IL-15), along with the suppression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1, IL-18, TNF-α), is thought to play a key role in the immune-boosting benefits of exercise. Physical activity should be beneficial to one’s health on a regular basis; nevertheless, characteristics like as volume and intensity must be considered for the suggested programmes to achieve the greatest outcomes.

Published
2022-03-09
How to Cite
Kamble, P., Daulatabad, V., Singhal, A., U, M., S, V., John, N. A., & John, J. (2022). Physical Activity: A Key to Uphold Immune Functions during COVID-19 Pandemic. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Physiology, 8(4), 133-135. https://doi.org/10.5530/ijcep.2021.8.4.34