Association of Healthy Diet with Recovery Time from COVID-19: Results from a Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study.
Study Goal
The researchers aimed to investigate the influence of a healthy diet on the recovery time from COVID-19 among survivors.
Results Summary
A more healthy diet was associated with a shorter duration of recovery from COVID-19, particularly among non-hospitalized patients, with significant effects noted by gender and marital status. No significant correlation was found with age or BMI.
Population
COVID-19 survivors in Saudi Arabia (738 participants, 32.1% hospitalized, 43.4% females, 56.6% males).
Effective Dosage
Not specified
Duration
Not specified
Interactions
None mentioned
| Intervention | Direction | Endpoint | Population | Dosage | Impact | Claim # |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
healthy diet | decrease | recovery time from COVID-19 | non-hospitalized COVID-19 survivors | - | was associated with a shorter duration | #1 |
healthy diet | no change | healthy diet score | males and females | - | no significant difference was noted | #2 |
healthy diet | decrease | healthy diet score | Saudis | - | was significantly lower | #3 |
healthy diet | neutral | duration of recovery | non-hospitalized COVID-19 survivors | 15.8 ± 9.3 male vs. 12.1 ± 8.9 female | was significantly affected by gender | #4 |
healthy diet | neutral | duration of recovery | non-hospitalized COVID-19 survivors | 12.1 ± 8.4 singles vs. 13.7 ± 9.3 married vs. 16.1 ± 11.8 divorced | was significantly affected by marital status | #5 |
healthy diet | no change | duration of recovery | non-hospitalized COVID-19 survivors | - | no significant correlation was found | #6 |
The world is still in need of an effective therapy to treat coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). This cross-sectional study was conducted on COVID-19 survivors in Saudi Arabia to investigate the influence of a healthy diet on the recovery time from COVID-19. A questionnaire was developed to assess participants' dietary habits, based on the 2015 Dutch food-based dietary guidelines. A total of 738 COVID-19 survivors participated in the study, of whom 237 (32.1%) were hospitalized for COVID-19 treatment while 501 (76.9%) were not hospitalized, and 320 (43.4%) were females and 418 (56.6%) were males. Overall, no significant difference was noted in healthy diet score between males and females; however, this score was significantly lower for Saudis compared to non-Saudis. Among the non-hospitalized patients, eating a more healthy diet was associated with a shorter duration of recovery (p < 0.05) and was significantly affected by gender (15.8 ± 9.3 male vs. 12.1 ± 8.9 female; p < 0.001) and marital status (12.1 ± 8.4 singles vs. 13.7 ± 9.3 married vs. 16.1 ± 11.8 divorced; p < 0.05). In contrast, no significant correlation was found with age or BMI. In this study, a more healthy diet was associated with a shorter duration of recovery from COVID-19. However, further studies are needed to thoroughly investigate the relationship between diet and recovery time from COVID-19.