Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development

Optimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was <1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified

Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development

AbstractOptimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was &lt;1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified.</jats:p

Worldwide trends in underweight and obesity from 1990 to 2022: a pooled analysis of 3663 population-representative studies with 222 million children, adolescents, and adults

Background Underweight and obesity are associated with adverse health outcomes throughout the life course. We estimated the individual and combined prevalence of underweight or thinness and obesity, and their changes, from 1990 to 2022 for adults and school-aged children and adolescents in 200 countries and territories. Methods We used data from 3663 population-based studies with 222 million participants that measured height and weight in representative samples of the general population. We used a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends in the prevalence of different BMI categories, separately for adults (age ≥20 years) and school-aged children and adolescents (age 5–19 years), from 1990 to 2022 for 200 countries and territories. For adults, we report the individual and combined prevalence of underweight (BMI 2 SD above the median). Findings From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity in adults decreased in 11 countries (6%) for women and 17 (9%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 that the observed changes were true decreases. The combined prevalence increased in 162 countries (81%) for women and 140 countries (70%) for men with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. In 2022, the combined prevalence of underweight and obesity was highest in island nations in the Caribbean and Polynesia and Micronesia, and countries in the Middle East and north Africa. Obesity prevalence was higher than underweight with posterior probability of at least 0·80 in 177 countries (89%) for women and 145 (73%) for men in 2022, whereas the converse was true in 16 countries (8%) for women, and 39 (20%) for men. From 1990 to 2022, the combined prevalence of thinness and obesity decreased among girls in five countries (3%) and among boys in 15 countries (8%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80, and increased among girls in 140 countries (70%) and boys in 137 countries (69%) with a posterior probability of at least 0·80. The countries with highest combined prevalence of thinness and obesity in school-aged children and adolescents in 2022 were in Polynesia and Micronesia and the Caribbean for both sexes, and Chile and Qatar for boys. Combined prevalence was also high in some countries in south Asia, such as India and Pakistan, where thinness remained prevalent despite having declined. In 2022, obesity in school-aged children and adolescents was more prevalent than thinness with a posterior probability of at least 0·80 among girls in 133 countries (67%) and boys in 125 countries (63%), whereas the converse was true in 35 countries (18%) and 42 countries (21%), respectively. In almost all countries for both adults and school-aged children and adolescents, the increases in double burden were driven by increases in obesity, and decreases in double burden by declining https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/images/research_banner_face_lab_290.jpgunderweight or thinness. Interpretation The combined burden of underweight and obesity has increased in most countries, driven by an increase in obesity, while underweight and thinness remain prevalent in south Asia and parts of Africa. A healthy nutrition transition that enhances access to nutritious foods is needed to address the remaining burden of underweight while curbing and reversing the increase in obesity

The law of 2009 concerning the selling and serving of alcohol to youths: from state of the art to assessment

Alcohol consumption is a widely discussed topic in the field of health issues in the world. Delaying the onset of drinking should be a key issue in alcohol prevention (WHO, 2014b) . Although age limits on the use of alcohol exist throughout Europe, alcohol use by youngsters of 15 and 16 years of age is common (Mulder & De Greeff, 2013a). Also in Belgium, where the minimum age limit for the use of alcohol is 16, it is clear that the majority of less than 16 year olds already drank alcohol in their life (Melis, Rosiers, & Geirnaert, 2014). Indeed, a recent study related to alcohol use among adolescents in Europe (Steketee, Jonkman, Berten, & Vettenburg, 2013) showed, from a sample size of 33.566 students from 25 countries (from 11 to 18 years old, x age= 13,90), that overall lifetime prevalence rate for beer, wine and breezers was 60,1% and 34,2% for spirits. Similar data were found in Belgium by the CRIOC study (2010) including 2.519 youths (from 10 to 17 years olds) where 65% of them had already drunk alcohol and 28% drank at least one glass of alcohol every week. Many factors may contribute to these high figures of underage alcohol consumption, but easy access to alcohol is generally assumed to play a significant role (Gosselt et al., 2007). Availability can be influenced by national policies that restrict supply and availability; such seems to be a proven effective policy (Babor et al., 2010). One of the possible measures taken by a government to reduce availability is establishing a minimum legal drinking age which has been a proven effective national health policy measure (Achterberg, 2011). Therefore, the legislation in Belgium was adapted in 2009. However, a newly introduced alcohol policy relies on retailers’ willingness to refuse to sell alcohol to underage customers. Before they are willing to comply, their knowledge of the new legislation is key. Indeed, another study of CRIOC (2009) including 160 sellers and shops showed that underage youths, using the mystery shopping method, obtained alcohol in 8 out of 10 selling points. Some possible reasons of non-compliance have been suggested but have not been clearly examined (e.g. motivational, psychological, economic, educational reasons) (Centre de Recherche et d'Information des, 2010; Kuendig et al., 2008). Finally, legal age restrictions without enforcement at different levels (federal, regional and local) are not sufficient (Gosselt, van Hoof, de Jong, & Prinsen, 2007) and so different levels (federal, regional and local) should pay attention to enforcement. The effect of enforcement is considered to be twofold: it influences the direct availability of alcohol and it influences the societal norms, attitudes and beliefs in society (Mulder & De Greeff, 2013a)(Wagenaar, 2011 in Mulder & de Greef, 2013). So far, the Belgian alcohol law from 2009, has not been evaluated. Therefore, the aim of this project is sixfold. WP 1. A critical analysis of relevant indicators of the new law of 2009 on drinking age limits which influence the behaviour of young people. Views on enforcement. WP 2. Evaluate empirically the impact of the alcohol law from 2009 on alcohol availability and consumption. WP 3. Evaluate the knowledge of sellers and young people regarding the 2009 law. WP 4. Feasibility study on test purchasing research (“mystery shopping”) WP 5. A practice-based perspective on the 2009 legislation by prevention workers and health promoters WP6: General conclusions and policy recommendation

Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development

Optimal growth and development in childhood and adolescence is crucial for lifelong health and well-being1–6. Here we used data from 2,325 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight from 71 million participants, to report the height and body-mass index (BMI) of children and adolescents aged 5–19 years on the basis of rural and urban place of residence in 200 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020. In 1990, children and adolescents residing in cities were taller than their rural counterparts in all but a few high-income countries. By 2020, the urban height advantage became smaller in most countries, and in many high-income western countries it reversed into a small urban-based disadvantage. The exception was for boys in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa and in some countries in Oceania, south Asia and the region of central Asia, Middle East and north Africa. In these countries, successive cohorts of boys from rural places either did not gain height or possibly became shorter, and hence fell further behind their urban peers. The difference between the age-standardized mean BMI of children in urban and rural areas was <1.1 kg m–2 in the vast majority of countries. Within this small range, BMI increased slightly more in cities than in rural areas, except in south Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and some countries in central and eastern Europe. Our results show that in much of the world, the growth and developmental advantages of living in cities have diminished in the twenty-first century, whereas in much of sub-Saharan Africa they have amplified