Better understanding why very young people start drinking has been a recent focus for the team at the ESRC International Centre for Lifecourse Studies at UCL. Research published earlier this year by the team showed that one in seven 11 year-olds said they had drunk alcohol and indicated strong ties with having friends who drank…
Born in Bradford
Born in Bradford is a fascinating child health development project following the lives of thousands of children in the city. It hopes to find out more about the causes of childhood illness by studying children from all cultures and backgrounds as their lives unfold. In this Child of our Time Podcast episode, one of the project’s lead researchers,…
A bedtime story
Reading is key to giving children the best possible start in life. That’s what Child of our Time Editor Professor Yvonne Kelly will be telling representatives of the Swedish Government and European Commission today when she delivers the key note presentation at a seminar highlighting the importance and benefits of early interventions in children’s lives. The seminar in…
Who are the 11 year old drinkers?
The number of young people who say they drink alcohol has recently fallen. But the teenage years are still the time most of us start drinking. Drinking can be linked to other types of risky adolescent behaviour and, later in life, alcohol remains a major risk factor for illnesses such as heart attacks, cancer and…
Giving children a better start
Child of our Time Editor, Yvonne Kelly will today be discussing why poorer children are more likely to be obese than their better off peers at a Big Lottery Fund event looking at how to give young children a better start in life. She will be sharing recent research from the team at the ESRC International…
Changing behaviour and mixed ethnicity
The number of mixed ethnicity children born in the UK is growing. Research to date has shown that coming from a mixed ethnicity as opposed to a non mixed background has no impact on the likelihood of a child having behaviour problems. But a new report from a team at the ESRC International Centre for Lifecourse Studies…
Racism, mixed race and child health
Child of Our Time Editor, Professor Yvonne Kelly has been outlining the impacts of racism on the health and development of children in her keynote talk at a workshop hosted by the Institute for Economic Analysis of Decision Making. Professor Kelly, who is based at the ESRC International Centre for Lifecourse Studies at UCL, has led…
Why poorer children are at greater risk of obesity
Obesity may be the biggest public health crisis facing the UK today. Levels have risen more than three fold since 1980. Being obese makes you vulnerable to a range of health risks. Being an overweight child makes it more likely you will become an obese adult. And you are much more likely to be an…
Are our children’s human rights equally protected?
It’s time to stop hitting our children and give them the same human rights protection afforded to adults says an important new report published by the NSPCC today. The report, which reviews all the available evidence on the impacts of physical punishment on children has been compiled by a team of academics at UCL: Dr Anja Heilmann,…
We know enough now to stop hitting our children
Despite a steady decline in recent decades, the physical punishment of children remains common in British homes. The UK is one of only five countries in the European Union which has not committed to outlawing all physical punishment. British children have less protection from physical violence than adults – a clear violation of international human…