Outbreak causing weight gain, sleep disorder: Survey

Nearly half of Turks have gained weight, while sleep disorder and headache have become widespread among people during the COVID-19 pandemic, a recent survey has shown.

Some 48 percent of females and 39 percent of males, who responded to the survey commissioned by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in January, said they put on weight during the outbreak, while only 8 percent said they lost weight.

On the upside, the number of people exercising has increased since the start of the outbreak, the survey also found. The number of people taking vitamin pills and nutritional supplements has leaped to 12 percent in January from 4 percent in October 2020.

The survey showed that people are suffering from sleep disorder and headache during the pandemic. Nearly 20 percent of those surveyed complained about headache, which is believed to be closely related to lack of sleep.

The outbreak also changed smoking and drinking habits in the country, according to the survey.

There has been a slight increase in the number of people smoking and drinking, while the number of people taking vitamin drugs have also been on the rise, it found. Some one-third of the public said they were cigarette addicts.

Over the months people have grown more pessimistic about a return to normalcy, the survey showed.

In a survey conducted in May 2020, the number of people who believed the country would put the outbreak behind in a year stood at as much as 64 percent.

But the January survey showed that people have become less optimistic about the prospects, with only 24 percent having said the outbreak would be over within a year.

More strikingly, 48 percent of those surveyed declared that they would not get the COVID-19 vaccine while...