Children's and Youth report: Educated parents have healthier children

There is a close correlation between health of children and level of education of ir parents. The authors of Children's and youth report of health insurance company DAK-Gesundheit come to this conclusion. Girls and boys in families with a lower education status of parents are affected by three times more frequently from diseases such as caries or obesity than children from academic households. For report, University of Bielefeld evaluated on behalf of DAK Health insured data from year 2016 of almost 600,000 children and 430,000 parents.

Children of parents without graduation are also more likely to be affected by obesity than academic children between ages of five and nine years up to two. In case of caries, re are 2.8 times as many cases. In case of developmental problems such as language and speech issues, children of parents without a qualification are 45 percent more likely to be affected. A similar picture can be seen in behavioral disorders with a difference of 44 percent.

The report also shows influence of socio-economic family background on type of health care: children of poor educational parents have up to 68 percent more hospitalizations and receive up to 43 percent more medicines prescribed than children of Parents with a high degree of education. In direct comparison, according to study, educational influences of family have significantly greater effects on child health than about income differences.

"The health inequalities between families is greater than thought," said chief executive officer of Dak Health, Andreas Storm. There have been demonstrably increased risks for disadvantaged children. "When parent's home is sick, diagnosis of children often depends on lifestyle of mor or far."

The nutrient traffic light as a solution?

The patient representative of SPD Bundestag group, Martina Stamm-Fibich, called for introduction of a nutrient traffic light as a consequence of report. The Government must provide readily understandable information to disadvantaged children and young people and ir parents about which foods are healthy and which are not. "How many such reports still need to appear until opponents of healthy nutrition finally stop fighting sensible and simple solutions like nutrient traffic light?" she said.

In Germany, more than 2,000 doctors have recently asked federal government to apply for a nutritional traffic light. Such labelling would allow consumers to see at a glance what is healthy and what is not. The food industry, however, is opposed to introduction of a nutrient traffic light.

Every fourth child is physically chronically ill

The children's and youth report also lists total number of children suffering from health problems: according to study, every fourth child is physically and one in ten is chronically ill. For supply of all minors, DAK spend 527 million euros in year. Half of cost is only three percent of insured children. 90 percent of all children are at least once a year at doctor or hospital.

The most common diseases in childhood are according to study respiratory diseases. For example, more than half (57 percent) of all girls and boys had a cold or bronchitis in year 2016. This was followed by infectious diseases (37 percent), eye diseases (30 percent), mental illness (26 percent) and skin diseases (25 percent).

Date Of Update: 29 August 2018, 12:00