Related Experiment Video

Updated: Sep 8, 2025

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
09:36

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

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Body Mass Index in Children Before, During, and After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Frederik Kirkemann Jensen1, Sigrid Bjerge Gribsholt1,2,3, Sara Schwartz1

  • 1Steno Diabetes Centre Aarhus, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.

JAMA Network Open
|July 9, 2025
PubMed

Insights

COVID-19 lockdowns significantly altered children's body mass index (BMI) categories. While overweight prevalence decreased post-pandemic, obesity remained elevated in younger children, and underweight increased in older children.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Health
  • Epidemiology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Significant changes in children's body mass index (BMI) were noted during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Understanding shifts in BMI categories (underweight, overweight, obesity) post-pandemic is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze changes in the prevalence of underweight, overweight, and obesity in Danish first and sixth graders.
  • To compare BMI category prevalence during and after the COVID-19 pandemic versus pre-pandemic levels.

Main Methods:

  • Cross-sectional population-based study using Danish health registry data (2019-2024).
  • Inclusion of all first and sixth graders with available anthropometric data.
  • Analysis of age- and sex-adjusted BMI (iso-BMI) categories using log-binomial regression.

Main Results:

  • Overweight and obesity prevalence increased in both first and sixth graders during COVID-19.
  • Overweight prevalence returned to pre-pandemic levels, but obesity remained elevated in first graders post-pandemic.
  • Underweight prevalence decreased in first graders during COVID-19 but increased in sixth graders after the pandemic.

Conclusions:

  • COVID-19 pandemic led to varied BMI category changes in children, differing by age group.
  • Increased obesity in younger children and underweight in older children post-pandemic warrant attention.
  • Findings underscore the need for age-specific public health interventions.
Abstract

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