A group of young people from a disadvantaged area in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England, decided to share their experiences of the COVID-19 lockdowns in a unique way. They teamed up with theatre experts to turn their thoughts and memories into a short film. This wasn't just any film; it was a creative way for these kids, aged 10 to 11, to express how they felt during the p...
The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to the world, with lockdowns being one of the most controversial responses. In March 2020, cities across the United States, including Cambridge, Massachusetts, shut down schools and businesses to curb the spread of the virus. The decision to implement lockdowns was driven by fear and uncertainty, as officials g...
Lockdowns were a big deal during the COVID-19 pandemic. They were put in place to stop the spread of the virus. But, they had a lot of other effects too. People's feelings about politics, the economy, and even healthcare got worse. This was a big problem for everyone, including the people making the rules. The virus and the lockdowns happened at the same time. So, i...
During the COVID-19 lockdowns, a 13-year-old boy from India faced a serious health issue. He struggled with severe muscle weakness, especially in his lower body. His body ached all over, and he had trouble walking. He even had to use his hands to climb up from a seated position. This condition is known as proximal myopathy, and it was caused by a severe lack of vitam...
Lockdowns forced a drastic change in the way cities breathed. This allowed a rare window to observe how air quality performs when humans stay indoors for long durations. Five big cities in India were tracked: Delhi on the north, Kolkata on the East, Bengaluru on the south, with Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam sharing similar temperatures. Bands of pollution matters wer...
The COVID-19 pandemic brought about significant changes in daily life for many people around the world. In Tunisia, the quarantine measures implemented to control the virus had an unexpected impact on people's eating habits and physical activity levels. This study delved into these changes, exploring how the lockdown affected what adults ate, how much they moved, the...
You might think that staying home during a pandemic would mean less partying and drinking. But for some adults in Italy, the opposite happened. From 2020 to 2023, researchers kept tabs on a group of Italian adults, checking in on their drinking habits before, during, and after the COVID-19 lockdowns. This isn't just about how much wine they drank with dinner; it's ab...
Imagine having to deal with drug addiction during a global pandemic. That's what people in Lagos, Nigeria, faced during the COVID-19 lockdown. This study dived into their experiences, focusing on how their drug use changed. It's a glimpse into a tough situation that's not often talked about. The lockdown meant people were stuck at home, with limited access to drugs....
A new study suggests that COVID-19 lockdowns may have accelerated brain aging in teenagers, particularly girls. Researchers at the University of Washington found that the cerebral cortex, the brain's outer layer responsible for higher-level thinking, thinned more rapidly in teens during the pandemic. But did lockdowns really cause this, or were there other factors ...