The impact of a national exercise intervention on lifestyle habits among individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders: results from the FitForLife intervention study

Abstract Objectives Individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders face challenges in maintaining healthy lifestyle habits and have a significantly reduced life expectancy, partly due to increased risks of somatic illness. While physical activity is known to offer broad health benefits, its influence on other lifestyle behaviors—such as diet, alcohol consumption and nicotine use—remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether an exercise intervention could affect these lifestyle habits in individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (F20–29). This sub-study was part of a single-arm intervention conducted across 16 outpatient units in Sweden. Participants completed questionnaires before and after the six-month intervention. Analyses included descriptive comparisons, non-parametric tests and ordinal logistic regressions. Results In total, 149 individuals participated. After the intervention, nicotine use showed minimal change. There were patterns of decreased alcohol use and decreased fruit, vegetable and meat consumption, along with increased candy consumption and binge drinking. Further interventions are needed to promote healthy lifestyle habits among individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Trial registration The trial is registered as “Fitforlife- Exercise in Care of Psychosis” in the ClinicalTrials.Gov with the ID number: NCT04239612 (2019–10–28).