The immune-modulatory effects of exercise should be favorably harnessed against COVID-19

This COVID-19 crisis imposes a revolution of habits and lifestyles that present-day societies appear unprepared to. Social distancing may be naturally associated with reduced levels of physical activity: home residing may augment sedentary behaviors (sitting time, watching-tv, using smart-devices). In turn, this may result in the worsening of chronic diseases such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and the deleterious effects of aging. These syndromic features are all pooled within a dysmetabolic continuum for which regular physical activity of moderate intensity is salutary. In other words, low physical fitness, dysmetabolic conditions (in primis, obesity), and an altered immune system could be seriously adverse for a subject exposed to this coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. Moreover, consequences induced by societal changes in response to such a pandemic viral infection may aggravate psychosocial issues by weakening immunological defenses (“psychoneuroimmunity”)