Body Mass Index Trends Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Primary School Students in Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia: A Retrospective Study

Overview

Journal Nutrients

Date 2024 Jan 11

PMID 38201879

Authors

Luka Androja

Tonci Bavcevic

Anamarija Jurcev Savicevic

Damir Bavcevic

Jasna Nincevic

Anita Buljan

Diana Nonkovic

Vitor Rodrigues

Zeljka Karin

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Within the last decade, childhood obesity has become a serious problem, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research paper aimed to examine whether body mass index (BMI) was higher during the pandemic (2020-2022) than in the pre-pandemic period (2012/2013-2019) using trends related to sex, urban-rural area, and physical activity (PA). This study included data from physical examinations of an entire population of primary school children from Split-Dalmatia County (Croatia) over a period of 10 years. There were 103,804 students from the first, fifth, and eighth grades who participated in the analysis. During the pandemic, the BMI of all the students increased, except for eighth-grade girls. Generations of eighth graders have had significantly different BMIs throughout the past decade. We found that first graders were overweight and obese in urban areas, while in rural areas, this problem was experienced by upper grades. Girls were more overweight and obese in the first and eighth grades, but boys experienced this more in the fifth grade. Reduced PA influenced an increase in BMI in both sexes, especially in girls. During the pandemic, this situation became worse. This study could be useful to experts for the creation of new policies for Split-Dalmatia County and surrounding regions that are similar economically and culturally.

Citing Articles

Impact of home quarantine on physical fitness of school-aged children in Xi'an during COVID-19 lockdown: a cross-sectional study.

Li X, Lu Z, Liu T, Sun Y BMC Public Health. 2024; 24(1):1169.

PMID: 38664808 PMC: 11047002. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-18607-6.

References

Filip R, Anchidin-Norocel L, Gheorghita R, Savage W, Dimian M . Changes in Dietary Patterns and Clinical Health Outcomes in Different Countries during the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic. Nutrients. 2021; 13(10). PMC: 8539259. DOI: 10.3390/nu13103612. View

Agha M, Agha R . The rising prevalence of obesity: part A: impact on public health. Int J Surg Oncol (N Y). 2017; 2(7):e17. PMC: 5673154. DOI: 10.1097/IJ9.0000000000000017. View

Navarro-Paton R, Mecias-Calvo M, Pueyo Villa S, Anaya V, Marti-Gonzalez M, Lago-Ballesteros J . Perceptions of the Body and Body Dissatisfaction in Primary Education Children According to Gender and Age. A Cross-Sectional Study. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021; 18(23). PMC: 8657074. DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182312460. View

Weaver R, Hunt E, Armstrong B, Beets M, Brazendale K, Turner-Mcgrievy G . COVID-19 Leads to Accelerated Increases in Children's BMI z-Score Gain: An Interrupted Time-Series Study. Am J Prev Med. 2021; 61(4):e161-e169. PMC: 8443301. DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.04.007. View

Shakir R, Coates A, Olds T, Rowlands A, Tsiros M . Not all sedentary behaviour is equal: Children's adiposity and sedentary behaviour volumes, patterns and types. Obes Res Clin Pract. 2018; 12(6):506-512. DOI: 10.1016/j.orcp.2018.09.001. View

Raufi A, Konstantinova M . Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity in Children: Variation in Different Ethnicities, Age, and Sex in North Macedonia. Pril (Makedon Akad Nauk Umet Odd Med Nauki). 2022; 43(2):23-31. DOI: 10.2478/prilozi-2022-0015. View

Mulugeta W, Hoque L . Impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on weight status and associated factors for obesity among children in Massachusetts. Obes Med. 2022; 22:100325. PMC: 9764432. DOI: 10.1016/j.obmed.2021.100325. View

Yang Z, Phung H, Hughes A, Sherwood S, Harper E, Kelly P . Trends in overweight and obesity by socioeconomic status in Year 6 school children, Australian Capital Territory, 2006-2018. BMC Public Health. 2019; 19(1):1512. PMC: 6852987. DOI: 10.1186/s12889-019-7645-9. View

Birch L, Perry R, Hunt L, Matson R, Chong A, Beynon R . What change in body mass index is associated with improvement in percentage body fat in childhood obesity? A meta-regression. BMJ Open. 2019; 9(8):e028231. PMC: 6720247. DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-028231. View

10.

Nenadic D, Kolak E, Selak M, Smoljo M, Radic J, Vuckovic M . Anthropometric Parameters and Mediterranean Diet Adherence in Preschool Children in Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia-Are They Related?. Nutrients. 2021; 13(12). PMC: 8706144. DOI: 10.3390/nu13124252. View

11.

Qiu N, He H, Qiao L, Ding Y, Ji S, Guo X . Sex differences in changes in BMI and blood pressure in Chinese school-aged children during the COVID-19 quarantine. Int J Obes (Lond). 2021; 45(9):2132-2136. PMC: 8178658. DOI: 10.1038/s41366-021-00871-w. View

12.

Vogel M, Geserick M, Gausche R, Beger C, Poulain T, Meigen C . Age- and weight group-specific weight gain patterns in children and adolescents during the 15 years before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Int J Obes (Lond). 2021; 46(1):144-152. PMC: 8458556. DOI: 10.1038/s41366-021-00968-2. View

13.

Contreras D, Martoccio T, Brophy-Herb H, Horodynski M, Peterson K, Miller A . Rural-urban differences in body mass index and obesity-related behaviors among low-income preschoolers. J Public Health (Oxf). 2020; 43(4):e637-e644. PMC: 8677588. DOI: 10.1093/pubmed/fdaa162. View

14.

Stavridou A, Kapsali E, Panagouli E, Thirios A, Polychronis K, Bacopoulou F . Obesity in Children and Adolescents during COVID-19 Pandemic. Children (Basel). 2021; 8(2). PMC: 7918914. DOI: 10.3390/children8020135. View

15.

Maffulli . At what age should a child begin regular continuous exercise at moderate or high intensity?. West J Med. 2000; 172(6):413. PMC: 1070938. DOI: 10.1136/ewjm.172.6.413. View

16.

Ventura P, Ortigoza A, Castillo Y, Bosch Z, Casals S, Girbau C . Children's Health Habits and COVID-19 Lockdown in Catalonia: Implications for Obesity and Non-Communicable Diseases. Nutrients. 2021; 13(5). PMC: 8153273. DOI: 10.3390/nu13051657. View

17.

Loomba-Albrecht L, Styne D . Effect of puberty on body composition. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2009; 16(1):10-5. DOI: 10.1097/med.0b013e328320d54c. View

18.

Oniszczenko W, Stanislawiak E . Association between sex and body mass index as mediated by temperament in a nonclinical adult sample. Eat Weight Disord. 2018; 24(2):291-298. PMC: 6441449. DOI: 10.1007/s40519-018-0617-8. View

19.

Nittari G, Scuri S, Petrelli F, Pirillo I, di Luca N, Grappasonni I . Fighting obesity in children from European World Health Organization member states. Epidemiological data, medical-social aspects, and prevention programs. Clin Ter. 2019; 170(3):e223-e230. DOI: 10.7417/CT.2019.2137. View

20.

Juresa V, Musil V, Tiljak M . Growth charts for Croatian school children and secular trends in past twenty years. Coll Antropol. 2012; 36 Suppl 1:47-57. View