Changes in the Prevalence of Overweight and Obesity among Peruvian Children under Five Years before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Findings from a Nationwide Population-Based Study

Abstract

This study aimed to identify changes in the prevalence of childhood (children under five years of age) overweight and obesity in Peru as a whole and at the departmental level, before and during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. We performed a secondary data analysis of two Demographic and Family Health Surveys (2019 and 2021) in Peru. The outcome was childhood overweight and obesity, defined as a weight-for-height score greater than 2 standard deviations. Poisson log generalized linear regression models adjusted for sex and/or age in months of the child were fitted to obtain the prevalence ratios of the changes in childhood overweight and obesity from 2019 to 2021. The analysis included 41,533 (2019: 20,414; 2021: 21,119) participants. The prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity was 6.4% in 2019 and 7.8% in 2021. Female children, aged 2, 3 and 4 years, and mothers who self-identified as non-native, had secondary and higher education, belonged to the middle and richer wealth quintile and resided in an urban area, in a village, in a small city and in the coastal region showed the largest increases in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity in 2021 compared to 2019. The departments of Pasco, Apurímac, Junín, Cusco, Lambayeque and La Libertad presented the largest increases in the prevalence of these nutritional disorders. During the pandemic, an increase in the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity was observed, with demographic and socioeconomic factors accounting for the largest increases in the prevalence rates. A restructuring of overweight and obesity control strategies is required to curb this steady increase.

Pediatric overweight and obesity increased in Israel during the COVID-19 period

“…A study relying on a large, common electronic medical record in the USA found that BMI increased very quickly during the early pandemic, but then stabilized or even improved slightly later in the pandemic [ 15 ]. A probabilistic annual national sample from Peru showed that the proportion of children with obesity had increased from 6.4% to 7.8% between 2019 and 2021 [ 11 ].…”

“…Our study had important strengths. While some previous studies have relied on convenience samples, such as querying patients treated in a particular health system, others reflect a probability-based sample of a national population [ 9 , 11 ]. However, ours is the first study of which we are aware that directly reflects the population of an entire country.…”

“…Many aspects of COVID-19, especially lockdowns and quarantines, contributed to an obesogenic lifestyle, such as reduced opportunities for physical activity and changes in dietary patterns [7][8][9]. Reports from many nations and many settings have suggested that pediatric overweight and obesity did increase during the peak years for COVID-19, 2020 and 2021 [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. However, many of these reports have used convenience samples.…”

Obesidade infantil no estado do Paraná pós pandemia: um olhar nutricional

“…A cirurgia é considerada como última opção, após tentativas de perda de peso por mais de 6 meses, com um IMC ≥ 40, maturidade do esqueleto, comorbidades relacionadas à obesidade que possam melhorar com a redução de peso, capacidade de decisão, adesão às orientações nutricionais pós-operatórias e suporte familiar. É importante ressaltar que a cirurgia só deve ser realizada em pacientes selecionados, pois ainda existem casos que podem alcançar a perda de peso sem a necessidade da cirurgia (Hernández-Vásquez et al, 2022). É necessário considerar que embora o procedimento cirúrgico seja eficaz na redução significativa de peso e melhora de comorbidades como apneia do sono e hipertensão, os efeitos metabólicos, nutricionais e psicológicos a longo prazo podem não serem totalmente satisfatórios (Seo et al, 2021).…”

“…É possível notar a evolução do consumo destes alimentos ao longo da pandemia, na qual todas estas classes de alimentos tiveram um aumento expressivo entre os anos de 2020 e 2021, auge da pandemia. Este perfil de consumo pode justificar o aumento no número de menores de 5 anos em estado de obesidade em 2022(Moura, 2023).Um estudo deHernández-Vásquez et al, (2022) revelou resultados semelhantes, a mudança do perfil nutricional para estes grupos de alimentos foi fundamental para o desenvolvimento da OBI. Países latino-americanos mudaram a expectativa da dinâmica da oferta de alguns tipos de alimento.…”