Youngsters Get Fatter, Gloomier

Youngsters are getting fatter and gloomier, and more secondary schoolchildren drink and smoke, according to statistics from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on Wednesday.

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One in every four schoolchildren was overweight or obese in 2018, up slightly from 23.9 percent in 2017. Among high-school boys, the figure was a whopping 29.1 percent.

The main reason was their addiction to fast food and fizzy drinks. Some 21.4 percent of schoolchildren ate fast food more than three times a week, and 34.7 percent drank carbonated drinks.

Nonetheless, a vast deluded majority of 72 percent between 13 and 24 believe they are in good health. The younger, the more believe they are healthy. Some 77.4 percent of teenagers between 13 and 18 said they are in a good health, compared to 67.5 percent among those between 19 and 24.

Drinking alcohol and smoking are also on the rise in secondary schools. Some 6.7 percent smoked last year, up 0.3 percentage points from the previous year, and 16.9 percent drank alcohol, up 0.8 percentage points. Smoking and alcohol consumption had been falling until 2015, but then rose again.

More secondary schoolchildren were depressed. Some 27.1 percent said they felt depressed, up two percentage points on-year.

And 10.7 percent of adolescents said they had nobody to talk to when they were feeling sad or depressed. Only 28 percent said they relied on their parents to get something off their chest.