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COVID-19 pandemic increases risk of Overweight and Obesity

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Category: Region NCR

ObesityThe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has drastically changed our lives. It limits our access to affordable healthy foods, safe and convenient places for physical activity, and social interactions resulting to anxiety, stress, and depression that may affect food intake. Poor diet, sedentary, and unhealthy lifestyle due to the pandemic have increased the risk of being overweight or obese.  

An individual is considered overweight or obese if his or her weight is higher than what is considered healthy for a given height.  The Body Mass Index (BMI) is a screening tool for overweight and obesity. The BMI is a person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters. A high BMI indicates high body fatness. A BMI of 25.0 to <30 means a person is overweight. Having a BMI of 30.0 or higher indicates obesity.
 Even before the pandemic, overweight and obesity are already an emerging health and nutrition problem. Based on the 2019 Expanded National Nutrition Survey (ENNS), the rate of obesity is increasing across the vulnerable groups, affecting 2.6% of children less than two (2) years old, 2.9% of children under-five years old, 9.1% of school-age children, 9.8% of adolescents, 35.2% of women of reproductive age (15-49 years old), and 31.1% of lactating women. For ages 20-59 years old, 28.6% are overweight and 9.0% are obese or about 1 in every 3 Filipino adults are overweight or obese.

Overweight and obesity increase the risk to cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, various forms of cancer and musculoskeletal disorders like arthritis. Overnutrition also poses risk to having hypertension, dyslipidemia, sleep apnea, breathing problems and liver and gallbladder diseases. Obesity is also considered as one of the comorbidities of COVID-19.  Obese individuals may suffer from serious complications of COVID-19 infection.  Overweight and obese individuals tend to have reduced quality of life.

One of the key factors that contribute to overweight and obesity is unhealthy and over consumption of foods. The anxiety and stress-related food cravings brought by the pandemic led to the sudden shift on food eating habits. During quarantine, people opted to buy more processed foods over fresh foods for longer shelf life. However, processed foods contain higher amount of salt, sugar, and fats. Many resort to ordering fast food meals which are high in trans fatty acids.  

The new normal has also made our lifestyle more sedentary as gyms and fitness centers were closed or with certain restrictions on their use during community quarantine. The work- from-home (WFH) setup and online school classes also led to long hours of screentime and sitting, with very limited activity. This sedentary behavior and low levels of physical activity increase the risk of being overweight and obese.  

The Obesity Prevention Awareness Week, observed every first week of September by virtue of Proclamation No. 162 s.1999, aims to intensify the knowledge and awareness of Filipinos on the risks of obesity. The challenge of maintaining a normal, healthy weight has come to another level during the pandemic. The key to having a healthy weight is by achieving an energy balance between intake and use of calories.

The WHO recommends limiting fat intake and shifting fat consumption away from saturated fats to unsaturated fats, increasing the consumption of vegetables and fruits, and limiting intake of sugars.  Individuals should increase their levels of physical activity to at least 30 minutes of regular, moderate-intensity activity on most days of the week.

To achieve a normal weight, eat healthy, stay hydrated and keep moving! Timbang iwasto, sa tamang nutrisyon at ehersisyo!

Written by:
Nutrition Officer I Jessica Ross P. Fernandez and
Nutrition Program Coordinator Milagros Elisa V. Federizo

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