New study reveals state of Australian children’s health

Parents are rightfully concerned about the health of their kids with a new study revealing one in four Aussie children are overweight and 45 per cent of six-year-olds have dental decay.

Sisters Kate, Annie, 3, and Maggie, 7, are very good at eating their veggies, brushing their teeth and always wearing their helmets. Picture: Sarah Matray

Aussie parents are struggling to get kids to wear sunscreen, put on bike helmets, eat veggies and brush their teeth.

A lack of information, conflicting guidelines and parents who can’t see the benefits mean some children are missing out on vital health preventive measures, research from the University of Queensland shows.

Lead author Dr Sabine Baker studied 447 parents of babies and children up to four years old and found more than half said their children brushed their teeth infrequently and didn’t go to a dentist regularly.

Sisters Kate, Annie, 3, and Maggie, 7, make sure they eat lots of fruit and veggies, brush their teeth and are aware of their safety. Picture: Sarah Matray

Other areas of concern for up to two-thirds of parents included their children’s vegetable consumption, screen-time limits, handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes and sun protection.

The findings come as one in four Australian children are overweight, 45 per cent of six-year-olds have dental decay, and the majority of four-year-olds have more than two hours of screen time a day.

Dr Baker said parents “are in a unique position to support the establishment of their children’s healthy lifestyle before less-favourable habits are formed and may therefore be key to shifting large segments of the population towards better health”.

She said many parents were concerned about their children’s health and wanted more information and tips to help their young children establish healthy habits.

The data shows parents take some health measures seriously. For example, parents limit the amount of soft drink their kids drink, take them for regular medical check-ups, get them immunised and make sure they eat enough fruit. And although more than half don’t wear bike helmets when using ride-on toys and bicycles, more than 90 per cent are correctly strapped into a car.

MORE NEWS:

BLITZ TO BRING RELIEF TO AGEING FAMILY COURT CASES

WHY YOU NEED TO GET IN QUICK FOR THESE SEAFOOD BARGAINS

MOANA REVEALS WHY SHE LOST HER HOPE IN FOOTY

The research was published in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health and presented at the Helping Families Change conference last week.

Lesya Abraham, mother of Maggie, 7, from Kew, said her daughter was extremely good at eating vegetables. “She’s more into savoury food than sweet things, but bribes are occasionally needed for her teeth brushing,” she said.

Kate, 8, from Deepdene, is another keen vegetable eater who loves carrots, baby ­cucumbers and tomatoes.

[e-mail]