Dealing with stress during the pandemic caused physical changes for many Americans – some gained unwanted weight and others lost weight involuntarily. The American Psychological Association’s Stress in America pandemic survey surveyed 3,013 adults in the United States and found that the majority, 61%, said they experienced unwanted weight changes.
Forty-two percent of American adults said they gained more weight than they intended and, of those, the amount they reported gaining was an average of 29 pounds. Ten percent said they gained more than 50 pounds. Weight gain that leads to obesity can put people at greater risk of serious illnesses caused by the coronavirus.
More women (45%) reported weight gain than men (39%), but men reported an average gain greater than 37 pounds, compared to the average woman at 22 pounds.
The study also divided the data by age group, finding that 48% of millennials reported weight gain. This group reported the largest average weight gain, 41 pounds. Just over half of Generation Z adults reported unwanted weight gain, with an average gain of 28 pounds.
Dr. Angela Fitch, vice president of the Obesity Medicine Association, told CBS News that she finds the figures reported by the millennium generation “impressive”.
“As an obesity medicine specialist … I find that alarming, for sure,” said Fitch. “But you can see where that might be the case. I mean, it’s been a very challenging year, on several levels.”
Fitch, who is an associate director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center, said she saw patients at the center who struggled with weight due to the pandemic. “I had a lot of patients who said they had gained weight, which I used to see before the pandemic and were doing very well with weight loss,” Fitch told CBS News.
Although self-reported surveys have often proved less accurate than studies in which researchers measure participants, other surveys are tracking evidence of weight gain in the pandemic era. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, found participants in a heart health study whose weight was monitored from February 1 to June 1, 2020, earning about £ 1.5 a month after states instituted orders shelter on site last spring.
Fitch said that if more data supports self-reporting by APA survey participants, and Americans actually gain so many pounds, “this will be a significant problem for us in the United States.”
“I haven’t seen any data on that yet,” said Fitch. “So, I don’t know if we have anything better to report than that [survey]. “
The survey found that the groups most affected by weight gain were also among those who experienced extra challenges during the pandemic: parents and essential workers. About half of each group reported unwanted weight gain, with parents reporting an average gain of 36 pounds and essential workers an average gain of 38 pounds.
“We have seen many of our patients who are nurses and express it a lot, who have gained weight, because of stress and because it is difficult to eat now in the hospital – taking off your mask to drink, eating is a challenging situation, so you can potentially unhealthy eating or skipping meals and then eating more than once, “said Fitch.
The survey also found that 18% of participants reported unwanted weight loss, losing an average of 26 pounds.
Weight changes were not the only problem reported in the survey. Many people also said that they experienced unwanted changes in sleep patterns and increased alcohol consumption. Sixty-seven percent said they had slept more or less than desired since the pandemic began and 23% reported drinking more alcohol to deal with stress.
Fitch added that drinking more alcohol certainly attributes the highest calorie intake. “Being more at home, eating more because of stress, and stress alone is a known factor in weight gain and obesity,” she said.