childhood

People who had a lower respiratory tract infection—such as bronchitis or pneumonia—before the age of two have twice the risk of premature death from respiratory disease in adulthood, according to a study published in The Lancet. The research is based on long-term data from over 3,500 people born from 1946 onwards in England, Scotland and Wales. According to the study, one in five premature deaths in this representative sample could be due to respiratory infections. The team adjusted their estimate by taking into account factors such as socioeconomic status in childhood and smoking in adulthood.  

A study carried out by researchers at the University of Amsterdam Medical Centres on more than 220,000 children examines the academic performance at age 12 of children born by induced labour. According to the authors, a reduction in scores was observed in infants born after induced labour between 37 and 41 weeks. The research is published in Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica.

22% of children worldwide have signs of disordered eating behaviours, a figure that rises to 30% for girls alone, according to an analysis published in JAMA Pediatrics led by researchers from the University of Castilla-La Mancha. The research brings together 32 previous studies that used the same diagnostic tool (the SCOFF questionnaire). It includes in total more than 60,000 children aged 6 to 18 in 16 countries. The article also states that the risk of disordered eating behaviour increases with age and Body Mass Index (BMI).  Disordered eating behaviours include behaviours such as ‘weight loss dieting, binge eating, self-induced vomiting, excessive exercise, and the use of laxatives or diuretics (although not to the level to warrant a clinical diagnosis of an eating disorder)’.

A meta-analysis of 42 studies from 15 countries, including Spain, concludes that the covid-19 pandemic caused learning delays in school-aged children and a loss of knowledge equivalent to 35% of the learning of a school year. The research, published in Nature Human Behaviour, highlights that these effects persisted over time.

A study published in PLOS Medicine estimates that the implementation of sugary drinks taxes in the UK in 2018 was associated with an 8 % reduction in obesity in English girls aged 10-11, particularly among those living in more deprived areas.

A study published in the journal PLOS Medicine concludes that the development and academic outcomes of girls and boys conceived with in vitro fertilisation (IVF) are no different from those of children conceived naturally. The analysis is based on data from two national assessments in Australia, including more than 585,000 children born between 2005 and 2014 (more than 11,000 conceived by IVF). The first assessment measured the physical and emotional and cognitive health of children aged 4-6 years; the second focused on the numeracy and verbal skills of schoolchildren aged 7-9 years.

A study published in NEJM that followed a cohort of more than 300 transgender and non-binary youth, aged 12-20, for two years concluded that hormone therapy led to improvements in their symptoms of depression and anxiety.

According to estimates by the United Nations Inter-Agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN-IGME) published by UNICEF, in 2021 some 5 million children died before their fifth birthday, and another 2.1 million children and young people did it between the ages of 5 and 24. Additionally, 1.9 million babies were stillborn during the same period.

Physical activity is associated with significant reductions in depressive symptoms in children and adolescents, according to a systematic review and meta-analysis published in JAMA Pediatrics that included 21 studies with 2,400 participants. The largest decreases in these symptoms were found in those aged 13 years and older.

In recent weeks, the UK Health Safety Agency has detected an unusual increase in infections with Streptococcus pyogenes bacteria. At least 13 children under the age of 15 have died from this pathogen, which is responsible for mild infections but also for more serious conditions such as invasive disease. The Spanish Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases has reported that there have been some deaths in Spain - the Community of Madrid has reported two deaths - and is analysing whether there has been an unusual increase in cases.