Dynamics of childhood obesity in Hong Kong throughout the COVID-19 pandemic before and after the school closures: a 3-year longitudinal study

Abstract

Objective: This study is to evaluate if there is any difference in the balance between incidence of and remission from overweight/obesity in Hong Kong school-age children before and during the COVID-19 pandemic over three years. Methods: This is a retrospective longitudinal study that involved children aged 6–16 years from a database of the School Physical Fitness Award Scheme. Results: 2765 students were longitudinally followed up for two years. The prevalence of childhood overweight/obesity was increased between the 2019 and 2021 academic years (P < 0.001). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of obesity remission significantly reduced by 7.9 % (P = 0.003), at a background of a plateau of obesity among children and adolescents. Conclusions: Our study provides evidence on the impact of school closure and home confinement as a standard infection control measure for the prevention of COVID-19, which are likely to break the balance between incidence of and remission from childhood obesity.