Topic description and stories

Understanding the implications of enabling children to grow into healthy, happy, educated and inquiring adults, in safety and free from adversity.

BaYaka camp in Congo. Image courtesy of Nikhil Chaudhary

Hunter-gatherer childhoods may offer clues to improving education and wellbeing

07 Mar 2023

Hunter-gatherers can help us understand the conditions that children may be psychologically adapted to because we lived as hunter-gatherers for 95%...

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Child's hands pouring a drink into a glass

Sugary drinks tax may have prevented over 5,000 cases of obesity a year in year six girls alone

26 Jan 2023

̽»¨Ö±²¥introduction of the soft drinks industry levy – the ‘sugary drinks tax’ – in England was followed by a drop in the number of cases of obesity...

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Family playing frisbee

Mums’ activity levels may depend on number and ages of children

16 Nov 2022

Less than half of mums meet the recommended levels of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity – and mothers of younger children manage to do the least...

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Boy taking part in a virtual lesson

Lack of computer access linked to poorer mental health in young people during COVID-19 pandemic

14 Nov 2022

Cambridge researchers have highlighted how lack of access to a computer was linked to poorer mental health among young people and adolescents during...

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Autistic child

Likelihood of receiving an autism diagnosis may depend on where you live

24 Oct 2022

New autism diagnoses tend to be clustered within specific NHS service regions, suggesting that where an individual lives may influence whether they...

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Robot shaking hands with Dr Micol Spitale

Robots can be used to assess children’s mental wellbeing, study suggests

01 Sep 2022

Robots can be better at detecting mental wellbeing issues in children than parent-reported or self-reported testing, a new study suggests.

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Group of children playing tug of war

Just over half of six-year-olds in Britain meet physical activity guidelines

11 Aug 2022

Fifty-three percent of six-year-olds met the recommended daily guidelines for moderate-to-vigorous physical activity in a study carried out pre-...

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Black woman holding newborn baby in hospital bed

Racial discrimination linked to increased risk of premature babies

05 Aug 2022

Women who experience racial discrimination on the basis of their ethnicity, race or nationality are at increased risk of giving birth prematurely...

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Toddler's hands touching tree bark

Children with rare genetic disorders more likely to be diagnosed with developmental, behavioural and mental health problems

03 Aug 2022

A major study of children with intellectual disabilities has highlighted the additional challenges that they often face, including a much-increased...

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Rear view of sports teacher practicing Yoga with her students at school gym

School-based mindfulness training programme fails to improve young people’s mental health

13 Jul 2022

A standardised schools-based mindfulness training programme did not help young people’s mental health and well-being overall, but did improve school...

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Teacher speaking with students

'Reductive' models of wellbeing education risk failing children, researchers warn

21 Jun 2022

An improved vision for wellbeing education should replace the over-simplistic approaches currently employed in many schools, such as happiness...

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Children playing

Pre-school play with friends lowers risk of mental health problems later

14 Jun 2022

Children who learn to play well with others at pre-school age tend to enjoy better mental health as they get older, new research shows. ̽»¨Ö±²¥findings...

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