Weak Kids

A National Poll on Children's Health undertaken among adults in the US by C.S. Mott Children's Hospital shows that 55 percent of adults think that kids’ mental and emotional health is worse today.

"We have seen major advances in medicine and public health over the last century. On the other hand, conditions such as childhood obesity, asthma and behaviour problems have become more common," said Matthew M. Davis, director of the poll and professor of paediatrics and internal medicine. The poll saw the participation of 2,700 adults wherein adults perceived diminished emotional and mental health among children along with worse physical health.

Coping and personal friendships for children were also widely viewed as worse than for children in the past. Forty two percent adults said kids today are in worse physical health compared to their own childhoods. The poll also found generational differences in adults’ perceptions of children’s health. Pre-baby boomers (aged 70 and more) were most likely to perceive that children’s physical health today is better than when they were growing up. Baby boomers (aged 51-69), generation Xers (35-50) and millennials (18-34) were less likely to perceive that children’s physical health is better now.