Wide variation in teenagers’ health revealed

UK teenagers have higher prevalence of being drunk and being sexually active

Adrian O'Dowd Wednesday, 02 May 2012

There is widespread variation in the health of children and adolescents across Europe and North America, according to a large international study published today by the World Health Organization (WHO) regional office for Europe.

The WHO report Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study: international report from the 2009/2010 survey also found that teenagers in the UK had a higher prevalence of being drunk and being sexually active than in most other countries.

The variation in the health of young people meant that many of them were not as healthy as they could be, said the authors.

The work is a WHO collaborative cross-national study involving a network of more than 300 researchers from 39 participating countries and regions across Europe and North America. Data were collected on more than 60 topics from all participating countries and regions on young people aged 11, 13 and 15 years old and results were gathered from around 200,000 young people collectively.

Important inequalities between countries emerged from the results such as the rates of overweight and obesity for girls aged 11 ranging from 20% in Portugal and 30% in the USA, to only 5% in Switzerland.

Smoking rates, although fairly similar at age 11 (under 1%), differed dramatically across countries by age 15 to over 25% in Austria and Lithuania, but 10% in Norway and Portugal.

Boys and girls showed different patterns of healthy and unhealthy behaviour, particularly at age 15.

In some Scandinavian countries and the UK, 15-year-old girls were more likely than boys to have been drunk – particularly in Scotland.

Weekly smoking was significantly more prevalent among girls in England, the Czech Republic, Spain and Wales.

Although not statistically significant, more girls reported having had sex (by age 15) in the UK and Scandinavian countries.

The authors said that health inequalities emerged or worsened during adolescence, and could translate into lasting inequalities in adulthood if, for example, academic potential was not achieved.

Family affluence was associated with a healthier lifestyle, such as higher levels of fruit intake, breakfast consumption and physical activity.

The HBSC report said that addressing the social determinants of health inequalities in childhood and adolescence could allow young people to maximise their health and well-being and ensure that these inequalities did not extend into adulthood.

Professor Candace Currie, HBSC international coordinator, of the University of St Andrews in Scotland, said: “Inequalities in child and adolescent health call for international and national policies and action to give all young people the opportunity to maximise their current and future health and well-being.

“Health promotion programmes should be sensitive to age, gender and socioeconomic differences, and should aim to create a fair situation for all young people. This report is unique in the world as a comprehensive picture of young people’s health and well-being, and is vital as a sound body of evidence on which to base policy.”

Zsuzsanna Jakab, WHO regional director for Europe, said: “This report shows us that the situation across Europe is not fair: health depends on age, gender, geography and family affluence. But it doesn’t have to be that way. This report gives policy-makers an opportunity to act to secure the health of the next generation.”