The Effect of COVID-19-Related Lifestyle Changes on Depression

The Role and Future Tasks of the National Assembly Suicide Prevention Forum - Focusing on the Legislative Content of Suicide Prevention Laws

OBJECTIVE

In South Korea, there were 12,906 suicides in 2022. This number is 4.7 times higher than the number of traffic accident deaths-i.e., 2,753-in the same year. Suicide is so serious that it is the fifth leading cause of death in South Korea. We would like to discuss how the National Assembly Suicide Prevention Forum was established, what role it has played in preventing suicide, and what role it should play in the future.

METHODS

We will look into the representatives and lawmakers who made up the National Assembly Suicide Prevention and summarize the topics of seminars conducted in each period.

RESULTS

Through the establishment of the National Assembly Suicide Prevention Forum in 2018, which is referred to hereafter as the "Forum," various efforts have been made to garner the attention of government ministries, which has led to an increase of 6.7 times in the budget for suicide prevention compared to 2017. With the launch of the forum, private organizations that had previously been working independently in their own fields were able to come together and speak with a unified voice. The formation of the Forum has brought the issue of suicide, which had previously been buried in the dark corners of our society, to the forefront as a social problem, and it has provided an impetus for seeking solutions.

CONCLUSION

In the 22nd National Assembly of South Korea, the National Assembly Suicide Prevention Forum is expected to play a more prominent role, which is expected to lead to substantial achievements in suicide prevention.

The moderated-mediation role of risk perception and intolerance of uncertainty in the association between residual symptoms and psychological distress: a cross-sectional study after COVID-19 policy lifted in China

BACKGROUND

A considerable number of individuals infected with COVID-19 experience residual symptoms after the acute phase. However, the correlation between residual symptoms and psychological distress and underlying mechanisms are scarcely studied. We aim to explore the association between residual symptoms of COVID-19 and psychological distress, specifically depression, anxiety, and fear of COVID-19, and examine the role of risk perception and intolerance of uncertainty in the association.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey was conducted by online questionnaire-based approach in mid-January 2023. Self-reported demographic characteristics, COVID-19-related information, and residual symptoms were collected. Depression, anxiety, fear, risk perception and intolerance of uncertainty were evaluated using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), COVID-19 Risk Perception Scale and Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale-12 (IUS-12), respectively. Linear regression analyses were conducted to explore the associations. A moderated mediation model was then constructed to examine the role of risk perception of COVID-19 and intolerance of uncertainty in the association between residual symptoms and psychological distress.

RESULTS

1735 participants effectively completed the survey. 34.9% of the patients experienced residual symptoms after acute phase of COVID-19. Psychological distress was markedly increased by COVID-19 infection, while residual symptoms had a significant impact on psychological distress (Ps < 0.001), including depression (β = 0.23), anxiety (β = 0.21), and fear of COVID-19 (β = 0.14). Risk perception served as a mediator between residual symptoms and all forms of psychological distress, while intolerance of uncertainty moderated the effect of risk perception on depression and anxiety.

CONCLUSION

A considerable proportion of patients experience residual symptoms after acute phase of COVID-19, which have a significant impact on psychological distress. Risk perception and intolerance of uncertainty play a moderated-mediation role in the association between residual symptoms and depression/anxiety. It highly suggests that effective treatment for residual symptoms, maintaining appropriate risk perception and improving intolerance of uncertainty are critical strategies to alleviate COVID-19 infection-associated psychological distress.

Alcohol Drinking in Adolescents Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic caused changes in individuals' daily lives, including drinking habits. This study attempted to identify factors of Korean adolescents' current alcohol drinking due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods

The study used secondary data from the 17th Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey that included 54 848 individuals. In this study, current alcohol drinking was defined as consuming at least 1 alcoholic drink per day for the past month. Changes in physical activity, mealtimes, smoking, and depressive symptoms were recorded.

Results

The multiple logistic regression results show that the risk for current alcohol drinking due to the COVID-19 pandemic was 1.14 times higher in increased physical activity (95% CI: 1.04-1.25, P = .007); 1.18 times higher in increased skipping breakfast (95% CI: 1.07-1.30, P = .001); 1.22 times higher in decrease skipping breakfast (95% CI: 1.10-1.36, P < .001); and 15.69 times higher in increase smoking (95% CI: 12.53-19.64, P < .001).

Conclusion

It is necessary to improve social support systems and related policies for adolescents who experienced a change in daily habits due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our results may contribute to preparing strategies and support measures to reduce drinking by developing personalized healthcare in the future.