Mediterranean Diet adherence, physical activity level, and quality of life in patients affected by thyroid diseases: Comparison between pre- and post-lockdown assessment

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic resulted in lifestyle change of world's population because of the measures adopted by governments to contain the virus spread. Design and Methods: This study examined whether lockdown impacted anthropometric indices, Mediterranean Diet (MD) adherence, Physical Activity Level (PAL), and Quality of Life (SF-12) in a cohort of 116 patients (96 F, aged 57.2 +/- 13.1 years) affected by thyroid disorders. Before lockdown, data were collected during the endocrinological examination; after lockdown they were collected through a tele-phone interview (via video call). Results: Data revealed an overweight condition in 59% of patients, with no significant differences between the two observations (BMI values: 26.5 +/- 4.9 vs 26.6 +/- 4.9 kg/m2), whereas waist circumference values significantly increased over time (93.3 +/- 12.6 vs 94.4 +/- 12.5 cm; p = 0.003). Moreover, a lower adherence to the MD (PREDIMED score: 7.3 +/- 1.8 vs 7.0 +/- 1.8; p = 0.003) and a significant increase of sitting time (6.4 +/- 3.2 h/die vs 9.0 +/- 4.2; p < 0.001) were observed. A not significant decrease in PAL, which revealed a sedentary condition in pre- and post-lockdown (648 and 562 METs/week respectively), was found. The SF-12 score did not show relevant changes between the two observations. Conclusion: Our study highlights that patients with thyroid diseases are often sedentary and exhibit a high prevalence of over-weight, underscoring the need for a systematic anthropometric evaluation and, at times, lifestyle interventions.