Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province

BackgroundOverweight/obesity and poor vision are currently common health problems for children and adolescents, and the change in overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents after the COVID-19 pandemic is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in the prevale...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Shian Liu, Nana Li, Nian Liu, Tianyu Fu, Yongkang Mao, Jingchang Du, Yanfeng Zhu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-05-01
Series:Frontiers in Public Health
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1582864/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849327854220738560
author Shian Liu
Nana Li
Nian Liu
Tianyu Fu
Yongkang Mao
Jingchang Du
Yanfeng Zhu
author_facet Shian Liu
Nana Li
Nian Liu
Tianyu Fu
Yongkang Mao
Jingchang Du
Yanfeng Zhu
author_sort Shian Liu
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundOverweight/obesity and poor vision are currently common health problems for children and adolescents, and the change in overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents after the COVID-19 pandemic is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in the prevalence of overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the influencing factors.MethodsA survey was conducted from 2019 to 2021, involving a cohort of 33,158 children and adolescents for the purpose of gathering their general demographic information and administering questionnaires. χ2 test was employed to compare the prevalence of overweight/obesity and poor vision across various demographic characteristics, while binary logistic regression was utilized to assess the statistical significance of correlation factors.ResultsThe prevalence of overweight/obesity was 25.43% in 2019, increasing to 31.28% in 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, and falling back to 24.64% in 2021. At the same time, the prevalence of poor vision was 68.02% in 2019, decreased to 61.30% in 2020, and recovered to 72.18% in 2021. Additionally, regression analysis revealed associations between overweight/obesity and factors such as gender, place of residence, frequency of fruit consumption, smoking status, moderate to high-intensity exercise and outdoor activity time. Factors associated with poor vision included gender, place of residence, eye exercise frequency, location of recess activities, turn off the lights when looking at electronic screens after dark, reading books or electronic screens while lying down, reading books or electronic screens when walking or riding in a car, outdoor activity time, and parental myopia.ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic has had profound implications for the physical and mental well-being of children and adolescents, resulting in noticeable fluctuations in rates of overweight/obesity and poor vision before and after the outbreak of the pandemic. Thus, in the widespread implementation of interventions such as home isolation, school closures, and extensive use of the internet, prioritizing the health of adolescents, timely policy adjustments, and specific preventive actions are vital in avoiding such occurrences.
format Article
id doaj-art-0a4e1534a75b45b687c9bacc79b53b57
institution Kabale University
issn 2296-2565
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Public Health
spelling doaj-art-0a4e1534a75b45b687c9bacc79b53b572025-08-20T03:47:45ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652025-05-011310.3389/fpubh.2025.15828641582864Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan ProvinceShian Liu0Nana Li1Nian Liu2Tianyu Fu3Yongkang Mao4Jingchang Du5Yanfeng Zhu6Mianyang Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Mianyang, ChinaSchool of Public Health, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, ChinaMianyang Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Mianyang, ChinaChangping District Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing, ChinaSchool of Public Health, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, ChinaSchool of Public Health, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, ChinaSchool of Public Health, Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, ChinaBackgroundOverweight/obesity and poor vision are currently common health problems for children and adolescents, and the change in overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents after the COVID-19 pandemic is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in the prevalence of overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, along with the influencing factors.MethodsA survey was conducted from 2019 to 2021, involving a cohort of 33,158 children and adolescents for the purpose of gathering their general demographic information and administering questionnaires. χ2 test was employed to compare the prevalence of overweight/obesity and poor vision across various demographic characteristics, while binary logistic regression was utilized to assess the statistical significance of correlation factors.ResultsThe prevalence of overweight/obesity was 25.43% in 2019, increasing to 31.28% in 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, and falling back to 24.64% in 2021. At the same time, the prevalence of poor vision was 68.02% in 2019, decreased to 61.30% in 2020, and recovered to 72.18% in 2021. Additionally, regression analysis revealed associations between overweight/obesity and factors such as gender, place of residence, frequency of fruit consumption, smoking status, moderate to high-intensity exercise and outdoor activity time. Factors associated with poor vision included gender, place of residence, eye exercise frequency, location of recess activities, turn off the lights when looking at electronic screens after dark, reading books or electronic screens while lying down, reading books or electronic screens when walking or riding in a car, outdoor activity time, and parental myopia.ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic has had profound implications for the physical and mental well-being of children and adolescents, resulting in noticeable fluctuations in rates of overweight/obesity and poor vision before and after the outbreak of the pandemic. Thus, in the widespread implementation of interventions such as home isolation, school closures, and extensive use of the internet, prioritizing the health of adolescents, timely policy adjustments, and specific preventive actions are vital in avoiding such occurrences.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1582864/fullchildrenadolescentsoverweightobesitypoor visioncommon diseases
spellingShingle Shian Liu
Nana Li
Nian Liu
Tianyu Fu
Yongkang Mao
Jingchang Du
Yanfeng Zhu
Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
Frontiers in Public Health
children
adolescents
overweight
obesity
poor vision
common diseases
title Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
title_full Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
title_fullStr Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
title_full_unstemmed Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
title_short Prevalence and factors influencing overweight/obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in a city in Sichuan Province
title_sort prevalence and factors influencing overweight obesity and poor vision in children and adolescents before and after the covid 19 pandemic in a city in sichuan province
topic children
adolescents
overweight
obesity
poor vision
common diseases
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1582864/full
work_keys_str_mv AT shianliu prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT nanali prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT nianliu prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT tianyufu prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT yongkangmao prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT jingchangdu prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince
AT yanfengzhu prevalenceandfactorsinfluencingoverweightobesityandpoorvisioninchildrenandadolescentsbeforeandafterthecovid19pandemicinacityinsichuanprovince