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Updated: Jul 17, 2025
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Children with asthma gained more weight during the Coronavirus Disease-2019 pandemic than in previous years: a
Velat Celik1, Pinar Gokmirza Ozdemir2
1Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Necip Fazil City Hospital, Kahramanmaraş, Turkey.
Insights
Children with asthma experienced significant weight gain during the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This weight gain was greater than in their non-asthmatic siblings and compared to pre-pandemic periods.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic led to significant lifestyle changes globally.
- Children with asthma may be particularly vulnerable to environmental and lifestyle shifts impacting their health.
- Understanding weight changes in pediatric asthma patients during the pandemic is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate weight changes in children with asthma during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- To identify factors influencing weight gain in this population.
- To compare weight gain in children with asthma to their healthy siblings.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 100 children with asthma (aged 5-17) and their healthy siblings (controls) from Turkey participated.
- Data on weight, physical activity, screen time, and sleep were collected via questionnaires before and during the pandemic.
- Statistical analyses compared weight gain between asthmatic children and controls, and between pandemic and pre-pandemic periods.
Main Results:
- Children with asthma exhibited decreased physical activity, increased screen time, and later sleep schedules during the pandemic.
- Both children with asthma and their siblings gained more weight during the pandemic compared to the pre-pandemic period.
- Children with asthma showed significantly greater weight gain than their non-asthmatic siblings during the pandemic.
Conclusions:
- Children with asthma experienced increased weight gain during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Lifestyle factors like physical activity, screen time, and sleep were altered but not directly correlated with weight gain in this study.
- Asthmatic children's greater weight gain highlights potential pandemic-related health disparities requiring further investigation and targeted support.
Abstract:
Objective:The objective of our study to evaluate weight changes and factors influencing weight gain in children with asthma during the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.Methods:The study included 100 children with asthma, aged 5-17, from two regions in Turkey. Face-to-face written questionnaires were used, and siblings closest in age sharing the same household were taken as controls. Only 65 of these children had healthy sibling(s), aged between 2 and 25 years. One hundred children with asthma were compared in terms of weight gain and lifestyle factors before (March 2019 to March 2020) and after the pandemic (March 2020 to March 2021). To determine whether the weight gain differed from the control group, the 65 children with asthma were compared to their siblings.Results:Survey responses indicate that children with asthma performed less physical activity, were exposed to screens more, and slept later during the pandemic period than pre-pandemic (p = 0.003, p < 0.001, and p ≤ 0.001, respectively). Children with asthma and their siblings gained more weight during the pandemic than before the pandemic (both p < 0.001). However, children with asthma gained significantly more weight than their non-asthmatic siblings during the pandemic (p = 0.011). There was no statistical relationship between weight gain and physical activity, screen time, or sleep status.Conclusions:Children with asthma gained more weight during the COVID-19 pandemic than before the pandemic. They also gained more weight than their non-asthmatic siblings during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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