PC1159: Examining the Effects of covid-19 Lifestyle on Pediatric BMI

Background: Although the prevalence of childhood obesity in America had been stabilizing prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, a population based study in Pennsylvania published in May 2021 showed the rate to be increasing again. There is incomplete understanding of the potential causes and implications of the effects of the pandemic and its associated adopted lifestyle on the rate of increase in childhood Body Mass Index (BMI). The objective of our study was to assess the trajectory of pediatric BMI during the pandemic versus the trajectory prior to the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Methods: Patients between the ages of 4 and 17, seen for >2 years and having recorded BMIs for at least 2 visits separated by one year, were enrolled at General Academic Pediatric (GAP) at Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters (CHKD) in Norfolk, VA during their well check. Consented patients over the age of 8 and parents/guardians were administered a questionnaire that examined six different potential sources for lifestyle changes that could impact BMI. Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) model and Spearman correlation were utilized for statistical analyses between variables. Data was collected from 238 patients (51% female identifying, 49% male identifying; majority African-American/Black) with an average age of 9.47 for females and 9.57 for males.

Results: We found that BMI percentile did increase significantly over the time period examined (beginning of the Covid-19 shutdown to May 2021; p < 0.001), however, when separated by sex, the increase is more significant for females (Fig. 1). The increase in BMI percentile over the pandemic correlated positively with an increase in family time (R = 0.164, p < 0.010) and an increase in screen time (R = 0.160, p < 0.012) over the last year. These results, and the other four lifestyle modification questions included in this study can be seen in Table 1.

Conclusion: These results of this predominantly African-American sample correlate well with the previous population-based study that children’s BMI has increased during the pandemic and more so in females. Two significant factors in this trend were increased time spent with family and increased screen time. As BMI increase is multifactorial, future directions of this study could be aimed at investigating the root source of these changes and other unexpected implications. The results of this study could help families and medical practitioners combat this alarming increase in pediatric BMI, which will likely stay with us long after Covid-19 lifestyle modifications or no longer at play.