Weight Gain: Pandemic Accentuates Issues

People seeking help from the NHS, after weight gain, during the pandemic are heavier at the start of the process than in previous years, according to a study.

A comparison of those seeking weight loss help, after weight gain, during the pandemic and the weights of those who sought help before Covid struck has found, on average, people are 5lbs heavier than those starting the programme during the previous three years.

Those under the age of 40, who enrolled on the NHS diabetes prevention programme, have put the most weight on, averaging 8lbs heavier in comparison to pre-pandemic numbers.

These were the findings of a study published in the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology when looking at weight gain.

“The pandemic has changed every part of our lives and taken a toll on mind and body, with thousands of people paying a heavy price, and many gaining weight during lockdown,” Prof Jonathan Valabhji, NHS Clinical Director for Diabetes and Obesity, told the Guardian.

“The increase in weight also means an increased risk of type 2 diabetes – which is associated with many of the common types of cancer, blindness, amputations, as well as heart attacks and strokes.”

The Lancet also reported a rapid rate rise in obesity in children in low and middle-income countries too, with the pandemic exacerbating the problem.

In an article titled ‘childhood obesity: a growing pandemic’, it said; “Lockdown measures including school closures, restrictions on leaving the house, and limitations on meeting with people have led to children and adolescents leading a more sedentary lifestyle than they did before the outbreak of Covid-19.”