How Did COVID-19 Affect Women's Health and Mental Health Differently?

The COVID-19 pandemic had a unique impact on women's health behaviors and mental health in the UK. Research using nationwide data (UKHLS) and a specific analysis method showed that women were more adversely affected than men. Women were 3. 2 percentage points less likely to adopt a healthy lifestyle and reported fewer healthy behaviors, equivalent to 7% of a standard deviation. This change was mainly due to smaller improvements rather than declines for women compared to men.

Even after lockdowns eased, these changes persisted. Interestingly, the pandemic weakened the link between healthy behaviors and mental health for women but not for men. Before the pandemic, healthy behaviors strongly protected women's mental health, but this connection faded during the pandemic, leading to a 10. 5% drop in mental health scores. However, as lockdowns eased, some of this protective effect returned.

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