Recent research conducted in mainland China found that obesity prevalence was higher among children in wealthier families, 4 but the patterns were different in Hong Kong with higher rates of childhood obesity among lower
income families.4 5 Hong Kong, despite having a per capita
gross domestic product of Hong Kong dollar (HK$) 273 550, has large
income differences between rich and poor as reflected by a high Gini coefficient of 0.539 reported in 2016; approximately 20 % of the population are living in poverty as defined by a monthly household
income below half of the Hong Kong
median.6 It is widely accepted that population health
tend to be worse in societies with greater
income inequalities, and hence low -
income families in these societies are particularly at risk of health problems.7 In our previous study, children from Hong Kong Chinese low -
income families experienced poorer health and more behavioural problems than other children in the population at similar age.8 Adults from these families also reported poorer health - related quality of life (HRQOL), 9 with 6.1 % of the parents having a known history of mental illness and 18.2 % of them reporting elevated level of stress.