HONG KONG – The prevalence of being overweight, including obesity, among Hong Kong’s secondary school students remains high at 20 percent, according to a health assessment conducted during the 2023/24 school year.

The Student Health Service Annual Health Report indicated an improvement in primary students’ overweight condition, but said the proportion of students spending two hours or more using the internet or electronic screen products for recreational purposes has increased.

While the prevalence of being overweight among primary school students decreased from 19.5 percent in the 2022/23 school year to 16.4 percent in the following school year, it remained high at 20 percent among secondary school students, said the report released by the Department of Health on Wednesday.

In the 2023-24 school year, around 257,000 primary students and 173,000 secondary students received annual health assessment services at Student Health Service Centres.

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In the 2023/24 school year, 94.4 percent of students reported insufficient physical activity, meaning that they were not able to engage in at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity per day.

About 89.9 percent of students – 83.5 percent primary and 97 percent secondary – reported an inadequate intake of fruits and vegetables per day, ie an average of less than four servings for primary school students and less than five servings for secondary school students, the report showed.

“To prevent childhood and adolescent obesity from developing into a lifelong threat to health, the Department of Health encourages students to adopt healthy lifestyles and maintain a balanced diet," said Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, Consultant Community Medicine (Family and Student Health).

Student Health Service dietitians will provide dietary counselling to individual students if indicated, she added.

Highlighting the inappropriate use of electronic screen products among students, the department recommended that children aged between six and 12 should limit recreational screen time to less than two hours a day.

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According to health assessment questionnaires, 43.3 percent of primary students indicated that they spent two or more hours using internet or electronic screen products – which include computers, tablets, smartphones, video games and television – for recreational purposes on a typical school day, which is higher than in the pre-COVID years of around 30 percent.

For secondary students, the proportion was higher at 80.9 percent.

Meanwhile, the state of vision among the students remains less than ideal, according to the report.

Regarding psychosocial health, a majority of students reported that they very much enjoyed family life (94.3 percent) and school life (92.4 percent). However, some students were identified to have psychosocial problems warranting attention.

In the 2023-24 school year, 2.2 percent and 1 percent of students in Hong Kong reported they had planned or attempted to commit suicide in the past 12 months, slightly lower than the previous school year, when 2.8 percent planned and 1.3 percent attempted it, and similar to the levels in the 2018-19 school year.

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The department's professional staff promptly provided the students concerned with an immediate risk assessment, support or arranged referrals for further evaluation and management, added the report.