Every fifth child and adolescent in Finland is overweight

Abstract

Background Globally, the prevalence of child and adolescent overweight and obesity has increased during the preceding decades leading to childhood obesity being acknowledged as one of the most significant health hazards of the 21st century. Yet, in Finland comprehensive and up-to-date data on the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents have been lacking. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of overweight and obesity among 2-16-year-old children and adolescents living in Finland in 2018. Methods The study was based on height and weight measurements taken at child welfare clinics and school health services between 5.7.2017 and 5.4.2019 (n = 375,561). The data was collected from the Register of Primary Health Care Visits. Child and adolescent overweight and obesity were defined according to international IOTF BMI criteria (age- and sex-specific BMI cut-off points corresponding to adults' cut-off points of 25 kg/m2 for overweight and 30 kg/m2 for obesity) and reported by age group and sex. Results In 2018, nearly 20% of boys and girls aged 2-16 years were classified as at least overweight while the prevalence of obesity was 5% among both sexes. The prevalence of overweight in pre-school-aged children (2-6 years) was 12% in boys and 15% in girls, in primary school-aged children (7-12 years) 23% in boys and 22% in girls and in adolescents (13-16 years) 25% in boys and 23% in girls. Conclusions In 2018, every fifth child and adolescent in Finland was classified as either overweight or obese. The prevalence of overweight and obesity appears to increase with age in both genders. Key messages Childhood and adolescent overweight and obesity were comparatively common in Finland in 2018. As overweight and obesity often persist into adulthood, multi-professional interventions targeted at prevention and early detection are essential.

Secular trends in 20 m shuttle run test performance of 14‐ to 15‐year‐old adolescents from 1995 to 2020

“…Sedentariness has increased and physical activity decreased along with the increased use of digital devices 34 . Decreased physical activity engagement combined with changes in nutrition may have increased the proportion of overweight children and adolescents in Finland 35 and in other countries 8 . Increased body fat mass is evidently one reason for the decrease in the 20mSRT performance of adolescents and increased variation in test results.…”