DH releases "Student Health Service Annual Health Report for 2024/25 School Year"
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Annual health assessment service is comprehensive
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The annual health assessment service includes growth monitoring; screenings for vision, hearing and scoliosis; physical examinations; health assessment questionnaires on health behaviours and psychosocial well-being; individual health counselling; health education; and mop-up vaccinations. In the 2024/25 school year, approximately 256 000 primary school students and 172 000 secondary school students received free annual health assessment service at the DH's Student Health Service Centres (SHSCs).
Weight management, diet and physical activity
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Starting from the 2024/25 school year, the DH has adopted the updated growth charts, the Hong Kong 2020 Growth References, to assess and monitor the growth of children and adolescents. The results of the annual health assessment indicate that weight problems among Hong Kong students remain prevalent. In the 2024/25 school year, the prevalence of being overweight (including obesity) among students was 17.5 per cent (17.2 per cent for primary school students and 17.9 per cent for secondary school students). In the 2023/24 school year, the prevalence of being overweight (including obesity) among students was 17.1 per cent (16.9 per cent for primary school students and 17.4 per cent for secondary school students) (see Note).
Regarding fruit and vegetable consumption and physical activity, the data are similar to those of the previous school year. In the 2024/25 school year, 89.4 per cent of students (82.5 per cent of primary school students and 96.8 per cent of secondary school students) reported an inadequate intake of fruits and vegetables per day (i.e. an average of fewer than four servings for primary school students and fewer than five servings for secondary school students). Concerning physical activity, 93.6 per cent of students (91.5 per cent of primary school students and 95.8 per cent of secondary school students) reported insufficient levels of daily physical activity, i.e. not having at least 60 minutes of moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity daily.
"Being overweight during childhood and adolescence adversely affects health and is associated with a greater risk and earlier onset of various non-communicable diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. Childhood and adolescent obesity can also have adverse psychosocial consequences, affecting students' school performance and quality of life. The DH will continue to provide weight management and nutrition counselling advice through the SHSCs to students in need and will continue to promote the importance of a balanced diet and regular exercise to students and parents. Furthermore, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government launched the inaugural Action Plan on Weight Management earlier this month, outlining five key directions. The action plan brings together the strengths of various government bureaux and departments to enhance collaboration between Chinese and Western medicine, aiming to comprehensively promote weight management across Hong Kong through various activities and approaches. We urge schools and parents to actively participate and join hands with the Government in nurturing a healthy new generation," the Consultant Community Medicine (Family and Student Health) of the DH, Dr Chuang Shuk-kwan, said.
Vision and use of Internet and electronic screen products
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Compared with the 2023/24 school year, the visual health of students in Hong Kong remains a concern. The proportion of Primary One students wearing glasses was 14.5 per cent, which was comparable to 14.3 per cent in the previous school year, but much higher than the pre-COVID years of approximately 11 per cent. Furthermore, the proportion of students wearing glasses is higher among students in higher grades. The proportion of Primary Six students wearing glasses reached 55.1 per cent. Among primary and secondary school students who had their visual acuity tested in the 2024/25 school year, 17.3 per cent required further assessment by the SHS of the DH or private optometrists due to a failed preliminary visual acuity test, or other eye or visual problems. A higher proportion of students in higher grades need to wear glasses or fail the preliminary visual acuity test, indicating deteriorating vision with age.
Healthy eyes and vision are critical parts of children's development. Visual problems can interfere with children's daily activities and learning. Prolonged screen use increases the risk of myopia. According to the data from the DH's health assessment questionnaires, in the 2024/25 school year, 41.8 per cent of primary school students reported spending two hours or more using the Internet or electronic screen products (including computers, tablets, smartphones, video games and television) for recreational purposes on a typical school day. Although the figure represents a decrease from 43.3 per cent in the 2023/24 school year, it remains higher than the pre-COVID years of around 30 per cent. For secondary school students, the corresponding proportion reaches as high as 81.1 per cent, which is a cause for concern. A number of studies have shown that spending time doing more outdoor activities can both prevent the onset of and delay the progression of myopia in children. With reference to international guidelines, the DH recommends children aged between 6 and 12 years old to limit recreational screen time to less than two hours a day.
Dr Chuang noted that if health or behavioural issues (such as excessive use of electronic screen products) are identified in students, healthcare professionals will provide health counselling and relevant information and refer them to the Special Assessment Service of the SHS of the DH, specialist clinics, or other organisations as appropriate for further assessment and follow-up.
In response to public concerns regarding the health impacts of screen and social media use on children and adolescents, the DH has been following up on the measures outlined in the "The Chief Executive's 2025 Policy Address" and established the Advisory Group on Health Effects of Screen and Social Media Use for Children and Adolescents in October last year. The interdepartmental expert Advisory Group is currently reviewing the latest medical and scientific evidence, as well as the relevant development and experiences in other countries and regions while consolidating expert opinions, with the aim of issuing updated health recommendations on the use of screen and social media by children and adolescents within this year.
Psychosocial well-being
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The DH's health assessment questionnaires indicate that the majority of students reported that they enjoyed or very much enjoyed family life (96.0 per cent) and school life (93.8 per cent) in the 2024/25 school year. Both percentages were higher than the previous school year. However, 2.1 per cent of students reported experiencing cyberbullying in the past 12 months, a decrease from the previous school year (3.0 per cent). Meanwhile, 1.6 per cent and 0.7 per cent of students reported having planned or attempted to commit suicide in the past 12 months respectively. Both figures are lower than the previous school year (2.2 per cent and 1.0 per cent respectively). In the 2024/25 school year, among the students receiving annual health assessment services at the SHSCs, 1.0 per cent were referred to the clinical psychologists of the SHS of the DH, specialist clinics or other suitable organisations for further assessment and management of their psychosocial and behavioural problems.
The Government has set up the 18111 - Mental Health Support Hotline to provide one-stop, round-the-clock support for people with mental health needs. The Government has also implemented the regularised Three-Tier School-based Emergency Mechanism through cross-departmental collaboration of the Education Bureau, the Health Bureau and the Social Welfare Department in all secondary schools in Hong Kong in 2025/26 school year. The mechanism has been extended on a trial basis to Primary Four to Six students to ensure early identification and support for students at higher risk of suicide and provide them with timely assistance and professional counselling or treatment services.
Furthermore, "The Chief Executive's 2024 Policy Address" announced the enhancement of the Whole School Health Programme (WSHP). Apart from publishing a territory-wide health report, the DH will prepare individualised health reports for each participating school, recommending targeted school-based health promotion measures for physical activity, diet and other matters to improve students' physical and psychological well-being. As of early March this year, 891 schools in Hong Kong have joined the WSHP, covering more than 75 per cent of primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong, marking an encouraging development. The DH encourages all schools in Hong Kong to actively participate in the WSHP, enabling Hong Kong to ultimately achieve the World Health Organization's vision of "making every school a health-promoting school".
At the same time, the Primary Healthcare Commission is actively promoting the Life Course Preventive Care Plan via the District Health Centres (DHCs), DHC Expresses and family doctors. A personalised preventive care plan will be formulated to address the health needs of citizens, including vaccinations required by children as well as prevention of infectious diseases, cancers and chronic diseases. The DHCs and DHC Expresses also provide children-targeted services, such as emotion management, weight management and healthy diet classes, as well as collaborate with schools to provide outreach health education, health-risk factors assessment, low salt and sugar diet education and promotion activities. In the long run, the Government will, in accordance with the Primary Healthcare Blueprint, integrate some of the DH's primary healthcare services (including maternal and child health service and student health service) into the primary healthcare system, in order to enhance children's primary healthcare services in Hong Kong and create a better environment for children's medical care and healthy development.
Full implementation of E-enrolment to streamline process
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"The free annual health assessment services provided by the SHS of the DH enable early identification of students with health or behavioural problems and provide them with timely advice and intervention services. In addition to letting individual students understand their own health condition, the DH regularly analyses collected data to monitor the overall health condition and relevant trends among local students. The information is disseminated to the public to raise their awareness about student health. In line with the Government's policy to promote e-Government services, the SHS has fully implemented the Online Enrolment Scheme during the 2025/26 school year. By streamlining the enrolment procedures, we aim to further encourage and facilitate participation of students, parents and schools," Dr Chuang said.
Enrolment for the annual health assessment service of the 2025/26 school year is now open. Students who have not yet enrolled may submit an online application through GovHK, or complete the Application and Consent Form and submit it along with the required documents by email (dh_stdhs_enrolment_exercise@dh.gov.hk), post or fax to the designated SHSC. Please refer to the website of the SHS of the DH for application details and forms.
Note: retrospectively calculated using the updated Hong Kong 2020 Growth References.
Ends/Tuesday, March 17, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:51
Issued at HKT 12:51
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