Reducing environmental risks could prevent 1 in 4 child deaths. In 2012, 1.7 million deaths in children under five were attributable to the environment. These included 570 000 deaths from respiratory infections, 361 000 deaths from diarrhoea, 270 000 deaths from neonatal conditions, 200 000 deaths from malaria and 200 000 deaths from unintentional injuries.
Environmental risks have an impact on the health and development of children, from conception through childhood and adolescence and also into adulthood. The environment determines a child’s future: early life exposures impact on adult health as fetal programming and early growth may be altered by environmental risk factors.
Adverse environmental conditions and pollution are a major contributor to childhood deaths, illnesses and disability, particularly in developing countries.
Children are particularly vulnerable to certain environmental risks, including: air pollution; inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene; hazardous chemicals and waste, radiation; climate change; as well as emerging threats like e-waste.
Children
Child malnutrition is a major public health issue worldwide. An estimated 144 million children under age 5 are stunted, 47 million are wasted and 38.3 million are overweight or obese. Around 45% of deaths among children under 5 years of age are linked to undernutrition.
Measuring the growth of infants and children is an important part of child health surveillance. Inadequate infant growth due to poor nutrition leads to under-nutrition in children in many developing countries, which, if followed later in life by an increased intake of calories, can result in overweight or obesity.
The WHO Child Growth Standards are a diagnostic tool used to monitor and assess the nutritional status of infants and young children worldwide. By tracking children’s height and body weight, the standards detect children or populations not growing properly or under- or overweight, and who may require specific medical or public health responses.
The WHO standards have charts for boys and girls separated, covering age birth to 5 years. They are used in doctors’ offices, clinics and other health facilities, and by research institutions, child health advocacy organizations and ministries of health
- Log in to post comments
- 14 views