How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect the health and well-being of families with young children?
How did the COVID-19 pandemic affect the health and well-being of families with young children?
This study examined how the COVID-19 pandemic affected health behaviours, stress, financial concerns, and food security among Canadian families with young children during the early months of the pandemic.
What We Did and Why We Did It
We surveyed 254 families participating in the Guelph Family Health Study between April and May 2020. Parents completed online questionnaires about changes in eating habits, meal routines, physical activity, screen time, sleep, stress, financial concerns, and food security, as well as open-ended questions describing their experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused major disruptions to daily routines through school closures, remote work, physical distancing, and economic uncertainty. Understanding how these changes affected families with young children can help inform programs and policies that support healthy behaviours and family well-being during future public health emergencies.
What We Found
What We Can Learn From This
Many families reported eating more snack foods, spending more time cooking, preparing more meals from scratch, and eating together more often. Screen time increased and physical activity decreased for both parents and children. Parents also reported moderate to high levels of stress, with balancing work, childcare, homeschooling, concerns about COVID-19, and financial uncertainty being the most common sources of stress. While some families experienced financial and food security concerns, these were less common in this relatively high-income sample.
Supporting families during times of crisis requires more than public health measures alone. Resources that encourage healthy eating, physical activity, stress management, and family routines, alongside financial and childcare supports, may help families maintain healthy lifestyles during periods of disruption.
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