Is My Child Also a 'Corona Weight Gainer'? ... Increasing Number of Elementary to High School Students Wearing Glasses and Gaining Weight

One in Three Elementary to High School Students Were Obese or Overweight Last Year
Outdoor Activities Decreased and Fast Food Consumption Increased... Over 2 Hours a Day on Internet and Games

[Asia Economy Culture Young Intern Reporter] Last year, it was found that 3 out of 10 domestic elementary, middle, and high school students were overweight or obese. This is analyzed to be due to decreased physical activity and increased use of digital devices such as the internet amid the spread of COVID-19. On the bright side, the number of students who strengthened personal hygiene practices such as handwashing increased.

The Ministry of Education announced the "2021 Student Health Examination Sample Statistics" on the 15th, analyzing health examination data from 1,023 sample schools nationwide. Since most schools postponed health examinations in 2020 due to COVID-19, this report was prepared for the first time in two years since the 2019 statistics. It investigated three areas: ▲ physical development status such as height, weight, and obesity ▲ health surveys including nutrition intake, eating habits, physical activity, sleep, and personal hygiene ▲ health checkups including spine, eyes, ears, skin diseases, and oral health.

According to the results, the obesity rate among elementary, middle, and high school students increased from 15.1% in 2019 to 19.0% last year. The overweight rate also rose from 10.7% in 2019 to 11.8% last year. Accordingly, the combined rate of overweight and obese students exceeded 30% for the first time last year, reaching 30.8%. The rate of overweight and obese students is the highest among the statistics of the past five years.

In particular, the weight increase trend was notable among male and female elementary students and male third-year middle school students. The average weight of sixth-grade elementary boys was 52.1kg, up 3.3kg, and the average weight of girls was 47.6kg, up 1.5kg. The weight of third-year middle school boys was recorded at 67.5kg, an increase of 2.2kg compared to two years ago. A Ministry of Education official explained, "In the case of last year, physical activity among students decreased due to the COVID-19 situation, but it seems that the intake of high-calorie and high-fat foods increased."

The proportion of students eating fast food such as hamburgers, pizza, and fried foods at least once a week increased across all school levels. Especially, it rose with school level: 74.36% for elementary students, 81.27% for middle school students, and 82.77% for high school students. Compared to 2019, this rate increased by 5.77 percentage points among elementary students, showing the largest rise. Middle school students increased by 2.56 percentage points, and high school students by 1.66 percentage points.

Vegetable intake rates dropped across the board, with elementary students at 26.58%, middle school students at 24.87%, and high school students at 21.68%. The proportion of students engaging in vigorous exercise three or more times a week rose by 0.81 percentage points to 59.41% among elementary students and by 1.82 percentage points to 24.28% among high school students. However, it fell by 2.35 percentage points to 32.73% among middle school students.

The proportion of students spending more than two hours a day on the internet or gaming increased at all school levels. It rose by 8.74 percentage points to 37.80% among elementary students, by 10.80 percentage points to 64.43% among middle school students, and jumped by 15.41 percentage points to 54.05% among high school students.

The fortunate point amid the misfortune is that the handwashing practice rate increased among elementary, middle, and high school students, recording high rates of 95.87%, 89.31%, and 89.15%, respectively. The prevalence of dental caries dropped by 4.77 percentage points to 20.24%. The proportion of students with "vision abnormalities," defined as wearing glasses or having vision below 0.7 in either eye, rose by 4.80 percentage points to 58.02%.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.