As a person living with chronic kidney disease (CKD), have you asked yourself, “How do my daily activities affect me?” Research shows that participating in certain leisure activities may affect how you feel about yourself and your health. Scientists in southeast Brazil recently conducted a study to learn how leisure activities affect hemodialysis patients’ assessment of their health, well-being, and life satisfaction.*   

What they did

Between February and September 2019, researchers recruited 1021 hemodialysis patients to participate in a self-assessment questionnaire. Data was collected and analyzed reagarding: 

• Leisure activities in which they engaged
• Sociodemographic characteristics
• Life habits
• Dialysis treatment and medical characteristics 

The participants were predominantly male (56.7%) and between the ages of 30 and 59 years old.

What they found 

The analysis largely focused on how participation, or lack thereof, in leisure activities affected hemodialysis patients’ assessment of their own health. Reports on leisure showed: 

• 59% were not involved in artistic activities (attending movies, concerts, theatre, etc.)
• 30.8% did not participate in manual activities (gardening, cooking, making crafts, etc.)
• 67.4% were not involved in physical and sports activities (going to the gym, playing ball, hiking)
• 53.3% did not participate in tourism (travel, excursions, taking walks, etc.)
• 50.5% were not involved in virtual activities (online browsing, chats, video games)
• 28.3% had medium involvement in intellectual activities (reading, taking courses, listening to or composing music)
• 30.5% had medium involvement in social activities (attending church, going out with friends, going to parties)
• 28.3% had medium involvement in idleness and contemplative activities (spending time in nature, meditating, etc.)

Of these eight activity types, virtual activity was the only one not associated with self-rated health status. Specifically, write the authors, “Negative health self-assessment is associated with not practicing artistic, manual, physical and sporting, social, intellectual, tourist, and contemplative leisure activities, which have the function of providing social participation and giving meaning to life.” 

When participation was non-existent, and when it existed but then decreased, the likelihood of patients negatively self-assessing their health increased.  

What it means

Leisure activities are perceived as important to hemodialysis patients for their health. Based on their findings, the researchers suggest that discovering and developing new activities and skills that are normally outside of the role of sick individuals can promote a positive perception of one’s health. 

They also posit that the social aspect of most of the activity types may be the most significant factor in the associations between lack of involvement and perceived negative health status. In fact, when participants mentioned not engaging in social leisure activities in particular, the chances of negative self-assessment were nearly three times higher. 

The researchers recommend that, going forward, health guidelines highlight the importance of leisure, and suggest that people living with CKD could benefit from having professionals on their healthcare teams who can encourage and facilitate such practices.

*Cunha, A. C. D., Santos Neto, E. T. D., & Salaroli, L. B. (2022). Self-assessment of the health status and leisure activities of individuals on haemodialysis. Scientific Reports, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-23955-7