Report Card Brazil: an updating systematic review of the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Brazilian children and adolescents

The objective of the present study was to summarize the prevalences, secular trends, and associated factors of overweight and obesity among Brazilian children and adolescents in order to update the 2018 and 2019 data published in the 2020 Report Card. A systematic search was conducted in nine databases, restricted to studies published between January 2020 and December 2024. After the analysis of 82 studies, the overall prevalences were 18.4% for overweight, 10.7% for obesity, and 29.7% for excess weight. When considering the overall data stratified by sex, boys presented slightly higher prevalences than girls for overweight (18.3% vs. 18.1%), obesity (11.2% vs. 9.7%), and excess weight (31.9% vs. 29.9%). When stratified by children and adolescents, prevalences of 18.3% and 18.5% were observed for overweight, 16.5% and 8.5% for obesity, and 35.3% and 28.5% for excess weight, respectively. Secular trend studies indicate stabilization in the prevalences of overweight, obesity, and excess weight among boys, whereas among girls these prevalences continue to increase. Based on these findings, preventive measures aimed at reducing the prevalences of overweight and obesity should be developed and strengthened, as well as treatment programs focused on the management of childhood obesity, which should be considered a top priority within the public health system.