The association between lifestyle and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in China: A large-scale cross-sectional survey.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the association between lifestyle and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Chinese adults and provide recommendations for increasing vaccination rates.

METHODS

From August 6, 2021 to August 9, 2021, we recruited 29,925 participants from 31 Chinese provinces via an online questionnaire. We designed a question to assess COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and used 16 items to assess lifestyle by calculating lifestyle scores. Odds ratios (OR) with 95 % confidence intervals (CI) were used to estimate the association by using binary logistic regression models.

RESULTS

The overall prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy was 8.40 % (95 % CI: 8.09-8.72), and the median lifestyle score was 65.00 (interquartile range: 59.00-71.00). After adjusting for potential confounders, the COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy rate decreased significantly with an increase in lifestyle score (P for Trend <0.001). Low COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy rate was associated with lifestyle factors including adequate sleep, never smoking, intermittent drinking, good relationships, working and studying, using hand sanitizer, wearing masks, less gathering activities, and keeping social distance (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that high lifestyle score is associated with low vaccine hesitancy rate among Chinese. The government should view the smokers (or the drinkers) as the key to further boosting the vaccination rate. In addition, the publicity and education about wearing masks and keeping social distance should be prioritized.