32% of children and adolescents feel worried, sad or unhappy after the pandemic

There is an incipient deterioration in the four major spheres of health (food, sleep, physical activity and well-being) of Spanish children and young people as a consequence...

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There is an

incipient deterioration

in the four major spheres of health (food, sleep, physical activity and well-being) of Spanish children and young people as a consequence

of the Covid-19 pandemic.

This is revealed by the latest report Pasos from the Gasol Foundation, which has studied a representative sample of the population between 8 and 16 years of age (2,892 boys, girls and adolescents from 223 educational centers in the 17 Autonomous Communities in a network of 14 groups research).

We spoke with Dr. Santiago F. Gómez, principal investigator of the study and responsible for data collection from March 2022 to January 2023.

Dr. Santiago F. Gómez, principal investigator of the Pasos 2022 study of the Gasol.EM Foundation

Perhaps the most striking data from this cross-sectional study is that from 2019 to 2022 the child and adolescent population that feels bad has increased from 19.5% to 32.2%.

What factors do you attribute this to? Without a doubt, the fact that in just three years the percentage has increased significantly, by 13%, cannot be attributed to a single factor, but rather to a set of causes at different levels and influence.

It is a very relevant piece of information at a time when kids are building their identity and we will see what repercussions it has later on in how they relate to and interact with each other.

Children and young people need to play and have fun and, when this has been limited in confinement, it has had an impact on their way of understanding leisure, which is increasingly individual and linked to screens.

In addition, stratified by gender, 40,

1% of the female participants declared having problems in this dimension, while that percentage for the male gender is 23.9%. Should we be concerned as a society? That we have such a high percentage of unhappy children and young people should concern us more than worry.

It is a responsibility of the entire society as a whole, without ideologies or political colors.

We must place the protection of children's rights at the center, supporting us in actions of the National Government, Autonomous Communities and municipalities, which must infuse actions towards a healthy lifestyle. One in three minors between 8 and 16 years of age has overweight or obese, according to this report.

The prevalence of excess weight in Spain is higher for a lower socioeconomic level.

To what extent does income affect these alarming figures? In the comparison of educational centers there is a difference of approximately half the prevalence of overweight and obesity with a higher average income per person and year: from 16 to 8.3%.

This can be explained from growing inequalities and poverty to the bombardment of unhealthy food advertising or the decline of healthy establishments in neighborhoods in favor of fast food.

Issues that depend on families should not be stigmatized. And what can be done to reverse the situation? At Fundación Gasol we work in primary education and sports centers together with the brothers Pau and Marc Gasol [NBA players and All Stars] with the aim of preventing childhood obesity in both Europe and the United States.

We ignore all these parameters to talk exclusively about healthy habits.

But, for the strategies to work, we need the environment to accompany us.

We have proposed a National Strategic Plan for the Reduction of Childhood Obesity with more than 200 measures. How which ones? At the national level, there is the reduction of children's advertising, which is already being worked on.

Physical activity should also be encouraged in schools, with more monitors to promote a safe environment beyond gymnastics, which should also increase their hours.

It is not just another activity in the curriculum;

It is paramount and should not be underestimated.

Children's environments must be more pacified at the traffic level so that children can play safely when leaving class.

Or favor resources so that families can access the quotas for extracurricular activities where the boys and girls move, because if we remove the two hours in the playground during the school period, in many cases there is hardly any active fun.

And if they have a good time, they will keep moving. And how can families get involved so that their children eat better if they spend less and less time with them? Teleworking in many sectors is a utopia.

For single-parent families with fewer resources it is more difficult to reconcile.

That is why we insist on guaranteeing opportunities at school, through subjects, extracurricular and the playground.

But parents should also prioritize active leisure time with the kids: walking in the mountains, cycling through the park... And they should get involved in their diet,

because if there is no fruit at home, it will be difficult for children to consume it. However, in a context of inflation, healthy products rise more than ultra-processed ones. Indeed, that is why we must raise awareness of how important it is for a child to see the father eat fruits and vegetables.

It is exemplary.

And avoid spending on nutritionally poor foods that increase the cost of the purchase without contributing too much.

The essential foods make our children grow as well as possible. Almost half of the child and adolescent population fail to comply with the eight-hour sleep recommendation.

Does that influence your health? It has a clear effect on academic performance.

Also in their well-being and quality of life.

At this point, attention is drawn to the incorrect use of the screens.

They assure in the study that the kids exceed their recommended daily use by an hour and a quarter a day, which is 120 minutes, increasing up to three hours more on weekends.

How to limit them without looking like a policeman? At a scientific level, we still need more conclusive studies on the impact that their overuse will have on physical, psychological and social health.

But yes, there is an increasingly early start age in the use of tablets and smartphones.

They are very much into the adolescent lifestyle.

It is convenient to continue reinforcing this preventive perspective.

We must build a healthier future society.