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Li G, Yang L, Xu X, Chen M, Cai Y, Wen Y, Xie X, Lu X, Luo S, Lin S, Li H, Wu S. Physical Changes of Preschool Children during COVID-19 School Closures in Fujian, China. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:13699. [PMID: 36294276 PMCID: PMC9602639 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192013699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic may constitute an "obesogenic lifestyle" that results in exacerbating childhood obesity. However, studies investigating regional sociodemographic factors including different age groups or sexes in children with obesity are lacking. We aimed to clarify the high obesity prevalence populations of preschool children to provide a regional basis for children's health policy during the COVID-19 school closures. From May to September 2019, a total of 29,518 preschool children were included in a large sample, multicenter cross-sectional study to explore physical status in Fujian Province by stratified cluster random sampling. In October 2019 and October 2020, we also conducted a cross-sectional study exploring physical development including changes in height, weight, and BMI of 1688 preschool children in Fuzhou before and after the COVID-19 school closures. Student' s t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, or chi-square test was used to assess differences in physical development and overweight and obesity rates among preschool children before and after school closures. For regional factors, the weight of urban preschool children of all ages became higher after the outbreak (p (age 3-4) = 0.009; p (age 4-5) < 0.001; p (age 5-6) = 0.002). For sex factors, overweight and obesity in boys had a greater prevalence than in girls before and after the outbreak. In four age groups, overweight and obesity rates in the 5-year-old group (15.5% and 9.9%) were higher than before (11.4% and 6.0%). The weight and BMI of 4- to 5-year-old children also increased faster than before (p < 0.001). The COVID-19 pandemic has promoted the epidemic of childhood obesity. Living in urban/coastal (economically developed) areas, boys, and aged 4-6 years old may be a susceptible population to obesity development after the outbreak.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guobo Li
- Department of Child Healthcare Centre, Fujian Maternity and Child Health Hospital, College of Clinical Medicine for Obstetrics & Gynecology and Pediatrics, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350001, China
| | - Le Yang
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Xingyan Xu
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Mingjun Chen
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Yingying Cai
- Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Fujian Children’s Hospital, Fuzhou 350014, China
| | - Yeying Wen
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Xiaoxu Xie
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Xinyue Lu
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Suping Luo
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Shaowei Lin
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Huangyuan Li
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
| | - Siying Wu
- School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou 350122, China
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Sun J, Wang L, Lin Y, Liu Y, Liu F, Liu X, Dong W, Cai W, Chen H, Xiao M, Luo H, Liu X, Duan J. Anthropometric parameters of obesity can be alternative biomarkers for the potential cardiac dysfunction in obese children. Front Cardiovasc Med 2022; 9:850071. [PMID: 36061547 PMCID: PMC9436000 DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2022.850071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Childhood obesity, as one of the potential risk factors of cardiovascular diseases, is closely associated with the incidence of cardiovascular disease at a younger age and has become a public health concern worldwide. However, its potential effects on the cardiovascular system have still remained elusive. In this study, we systematically evaluated the cardiovascular characteristics of 79 obese children and 161 normal weight children in Guangzhou (China) using the potential biomarkers for cardiovascular disease. Compared with normal weight children, obese children not only exhibited significantly higher levels of creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LHD), soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (s-Flt-1), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and uric acid (UA) (p = 0.0062, 0.0012, 0.0013, 0.0225, and <0.0001, respectively) but also significantly higher diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.0074) and the heart rate (p = 0.0049) were found in obese children. Of 79 obese children, cardiac functions of 40 cases were further assessed by color Doppler echocardiography. The results showed that there were significant differences between the obesity group and the healthy weight group in terms of interventricular septal wall thickness at end-diastolic (IVSd), the left ventricular posterior wall thickness at end-diastolic (LVPWD), and aortic annulus (AO) (p < 0.0001, 0.0003, and p < 0.0001, respectively). Besides, the left and/or right ventricular functions were declined in 52.4% of obese children. Correlation analysis revealed that the anthropometric parameters of obesity were not only significantly correlated with a blood lipid profile but also exhibited a more significant correlation with most of the parameters of cardiac dysfunction than a blood lipid profile. Therefore, our study indicated that obese children in Guangzhou suffered from functional damages related to cardiovascular events, which were characterized by cardiac dysfunction, and the anthropometric parameters of obesity could be economically alternative biomarkers for monitoring of cardiac dysfunction in obese children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Sun
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Jing Sun,
| | - Li Wang
- Department of Echocardiography, Heart Center, Guangzhou Women and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yingjiong Lin
- Heart Center and Institute of Pediatrics, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yunfeng Liu
- Department of Laboratory, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fei Liu
- Department of Laboratory, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xumei Liu
- Department of Echocardiography, Heart Center, Guangzhou Women and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wenyan Dong
- Heart Center and Institute of Pediatrics, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wenqian Cai
- Heart Center and Institute of Pediatrics, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Huimin Chen
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Minhua Xiao
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hongfeng Luo
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xihong Liu
- Department of Clinical Nutrition, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- Xihong Liu,
| | - Jinzhu Duan
- Heart Center and Institute of Pediatrics, Guangzhou Women’s and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
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