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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Ian Sample and Nicola Davis

Study finds link between poor mental health and long Covid

A sizeable minority of people who catch Covid develop long-term ailments such as fatigue, breathlessness, brain fog and heart problems.
A sizeable minority of people who catch Covid develop long-term ailments such as fatigue, breathlessness, brain fog and heart problems. Photograph: Tom Grill/Getty Images/Tetra images RF

People who are highly stressed, anxious, lonely or depressed before catching coronavirus are more prone to long Covid than those in good mental health, according to a major study.

A Harvard analysis of health data from nearly 55,000 US volunteers, most of whom were women, found that high levels of psychological distress before Covid infection raised the risk of long-term illness by 32%-46%.

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