COVID Shelter-In-Place Orders Led To Weight Gain, Study Finds
BOSTON (CBS/CNN) -- A group of study participants gained on average more than 1.5 pounds per month during Covid-19 shelter-in-place orders in March and April, according to a research letter published in JAMA Network Open.
From March 19 to April 6, 2020, 45 out of 50 US state governments issued shelter-in-place orders to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.
A research team looked at nearly 7,500 weight measurements from 269 participants between February 1 and June 1, 2020. The participants were part of the Health eHeart Study, and their weight measurements came from Bluetooth-connected smart scales.
Additionally, a recent pandemic stress survey by the American Psychological Association found that 61% of American adults said they have experienced undesired weight changes, CBS News reports.
Forty-two percent of adults said they gained more weight than they intended, reporting an average weight gain of 29 pounds. About 10% said they gained over 50 pounds.
Dr. Angela Fitch, who is vice president of the Obesity Medicine Association and associate director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, told CBS News she found the numbers "alarming," but acknowledged it's been a challenging year. She said many of her patients have been struggling with their weight.
"I've had a lot of patients back that say they gained weight, that I used to see before the pandemic and were doing quite well with weight loss," Fitch said.
(© Copyright 2021 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. CNN contributed to this report.)