Better Overall Health, Fitness among Chinese Students

Children take part in a running game at a kindergarten in Huzhou, Zhejiang province, on Wednesday, the first day of the new semester for most students across China. Schools nationwide are taking steps to relieve the academic burden of their students and promote the all-around development of the youngsters. Wu Zheng/For China Daily

Chinese students' overall health and fitness have been improved in recent years, with increased height, weight, speed and lung capacity, according to a national report released on Friday.

The report, based on a survey of 374,257 students from ages 6 to 22 at primary schools through universities nationwide, was conducted by the Ministry of Education and five other departments. It was the eighth time the five-year report was released.

For students between the ages of 13 and 22, those in good health accounted for 17.7 percent of the total in 2019, up by 2.9 percentage points from 2014, the survey showed.

The percentage of middle school students in good health saw the biggest improvement during the 2014-2019 period, up by 5.1 percentage points. However, the percentage of university students in good health remained relatively unchanged in the same period, up by only 0.2 percentage points, according to the survey.

Moreover, the height, weight and chest circumference for both male and female students in all age groups saw improvement. Their lung capacity, strength, speed, flexibility and stamina have also improved, while the malnutrition rate has seen a steady decrease, the survey said.