Bezmiâlem Science (Oct 2023)

How The Pandemic Has Affected Children’s Weight and Height?-A Single Center Experience

  • Nevin CAMBAZ KURT,
  • Tülin KURTUL DEMİRHAN,
  • Ahmet SERT,
  • Habip BALSAK,
  • Hasan ÖNAL

DOI
https://doi.org/10.14235/bas.galenos.2023.59251
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 11, no. 4
pp. 364 – 370

Abstract

Read online

Objective:The pandemic lockdown has affected the whole world regarding health, social, and economic aspects. This study aimed to detect the pandemic’s effect on children’s height and weight.Methods:The study was a retrospective cohort study. The data were collected from patients aged 48 to 144 months who were followed up for three years between 2020 and 2022 in the pediatric outpatient clinic. Height and weight percentiles, and body mass index values of the patients were recorded.Results:Eighty children were included in the study. It was determined that the children’s annual body weight percentile values increased statistically significantly between 2020-2022. It was determined that there was a significant increase in the weight percentile values of children aged 48-59 months in all three years (p values were 0.00, 0.00, and 0.00, respectively). While there was no change in the height percentile value between 2020-21, an increase was observed in other years (2021 vs. 2022 and 2020 vs. 2022). While there was no increase in body weight percentile values between 2020-2021 in children aged 60-95 months, it was observed to increase in the following two years (p values were 0.00, and 0.00 respectively). In children aged 96-144 months, there was no statistically significant increase in weight and height percentile values over the years.Conclusion:The pandemic caused weight gain and increased the prevalence of obesity in children. While this increase was more pronounced in children aged 48-59 months, no weight gain was observed in children aged 96-144.

Keywords