Weigh-ins: Primary School Weight Measurements are Back

Schools are set to introduce regular weigh-ins for primary-aged students as the nation faces up to the effects of the Covid-19 lockdown.

The UK is in the process of unlocking after months of restrictions, but there is a belief in certain quarters that one of the by-products of lockdown will see increased waistlines and more children facing the prospect of being overweight or obese.

The previous weigh-ins were put on hold in March 2020 as schools were closed and social distancing enforced.

But experts are warning that a mix of homeschooling, less regular exercise and easier access to snacks has left children in a perilous fitness state.

Tam Fry, chair of the National Obesity Forum, told the Independent; “We expect the figures will have gone up and we expect the results, when we get them, to be a real jolt to Boris Johnson.

“We have got to do something very serious about this problem. We cannot wait to the end of Covid.”

Pre-Covid, students were weighed twice during their time at primary school. Individual results of the latest measurements will be sent to parents to let them know if their child is at risk of developing a weight problem.

However, Hope Virgo, who has been fighting to improve eating disorder services and scrap BMI measurements, is against the move, telling the Metro; “This initiative will cause shame, guilt and scare monger children all over the country. Not only this, but the potential for bullying is high.”

Even before the pandemic, the UK had some of the highest rates of overweight children in Western Europe, with one in five classed as obese.