Experts are worried that the six months students will not be in schools will have severe health consequences such as obesity, mental health and lack of sleep. They have called for schools to be reopened as soon as possible to allow students to practice physical activities and exercises.
Over 10 million pupils in the UK will have stayed home for at least six months when schools finally reopen in September. This will be after months of school shutdowns put in place to curb the spread of coronavirus in the country.
Obesity and other health issues concern
Experts are now warning that the lockdown will have long term impact on the health of these pupils, long after the virus is dealt with. Health chiefs warned that health risks such as obesity were expected to be prevalent among these kids due to lockdowns.
In a country where research shows that one in five pupils are overweight, health experts warned that coronavirus would exacerbate the obesity situation in the country. Russell Viner, who leads the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health said, everyone in the health sector was concerned that if schools are not opened as soon as possible, then the situation would become dire.
The hidden impact of the virus
Professor Viner continued by saying that as everyone is talking about the impact of coronavirus on the health of these pupils, there are other angles of this disease that are not getting the attention they deserve.
He described the impact of staying at home, which has resulted in many pupils being inactive and unable to carry out physical activities and exercises. This would potentially lead to obesity for these pupils, poor mental health and poor sleep, conditions that would have long term effects on these students and their studies.
The call to reopen schools by Professor Viner comes as the UK daily coronavirus cases, hospitalization and fatalities continue to fall. In the last 24 hours, the UK recorded only 38 fatalities from the virus, a significant improvement over the past few weeks.
The government directive has also stated that it will be relaxing their social distancing restrictions by the end of the month. When schools finally reopen, the government has indicated that social distancing was a goal, not a policy, and therefore, schools will be at liberty to enforce it however they see it fit.
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