COVID-19 is worsening the onset of obesity in children—and we aren’t doing enough about it.
COVID-19, in many ways, has inextricably impacted the physical and psychosocial well-being of millions of familieswithin the United States. And while the virus itself presents many serious health risks, the consequential effects of dramatic changes to our lifestyles have certainly warranted health concerns, especially for vulnerable populations like adolescents.
Although the pandemic may seem on-going, the relatively short period of time that it has been around—2.5 years since March 11, 2020— has already dramatically increased rates of weight gain and obesity risk in children. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has observed a doubling of body mass index (BMI) during the pandemic compared to a pre-pandemic period in a cohort of 432,302 children between the ages of 2 to 19. Persons who were already overweight or obese and younger school-aged children experienced the largest increases. In addition to weight gain, there have been deleterious increases in stress, irregular eating, less access to nutritiousfoods, increased screen time, and lower amounts of physical activity.
Experts from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health highlighted some related negative health consequences for adolescents. Harvard faculty members acknowledged that the alarming increases in foodinsecurity for children during COVID-19 needs serious attention. U.S. households with children who are insecuredoubled to 28 percent, from 14 percent, impacting communities of color the most. Food insecure children are also more likely to have poorer health outcomes. The researchers noted that limited access to quality nutrition through school programs and increasing unemployment rates have brought the highest rates of children food insecurity in decades.
Although food insecurity and childhood obesity may not be causally linked beyond the impact of poverty, they do often coincide within at-risk populations. In a 2020 literature review, researchers found that both food insecurityand pediatric obesity disproportionately burden low-income families. Thus, it is important to consider the influence of socioeconomic hardships on the livelihood of our children.
Both COVID-19 and childhood obesity are multifaceted issues. There certainly aren’t any easy answers to solving these health crises. However, there are certainly things that we can do to make things better.
Encouraging parents, families, and children to make healthier behavioral choices can make a difference. As anutrition-based researcher, I serve as a Co-Investigator on the Translational Health in Nutrition and Kinesiology (THINK) program at the University of Miami. Our research has clearly demonstrated an improvement in body composition and other physical measures of health through nutritional education.
Additionally, there have been clear differences in before versus the onset of the pandemic for improvements in fitness. After conducting the THINK program during 2019, 2021, and 2022, the greatest benefits to physical fitness happened before COVID-19 among the adolescents who participated within the THINK program. Programs like these should be offered on a broader scale to various at-risk school districts and communities. Increased governmental and financial support for these programs could serve as a valuable resource to support the welfare ofour children.
Furthermore, greater support for nutrition and exercise related resources for communities is crucial. For instance, the Heroes Bill hasexpanded emergency relief for school meal programs and child nutrition services. More funding for these programs and additional funding for physical activity education can better preserve healthy behaviors in adolescents. At a community level, increasing benefits from food assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Program and Women, Infants, and Children programs can alleviate poverty-related limited access to quality nutrition.
The global pandemic has clearly demonstrated that urgency can drive progress forward. Why can’t we do the same for the sake of our children’s health?
Joseph Bonner has a master’s degree in Nutrition and is a graduate student in the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Miami. Read more about the inaugural “Op-ed Challenge.”
