The study was conducted by researchers at UC San Francisco and was published in the medical journal 'JAMA'.<br />While small in scope, it offers the first conclusive glimpse into the amount of weight Americans may have gained during the pandemic.<br />269 volunteers from around the country reported their weight via smart scales connected by Bluetooth.<br />The data collected amounted to nearly 7,500 weight measurements over four months.<br />Researchers suggest that because the participants were likely more health-conscious than the average person, the findings are the "tip of the iceberg."<br />"Weight gain is a public health problem in the U.S. already, so anything making it worse is definitely concerning and shelter-in-place orders are so ubiquitous that the sheer number of people affected by this makes it extremely relevant." Dr. Gregory M. Marcus, Senior Study Author, <br />via 'The New York Times'
