Question
How does child poverty impact the health of disadvantaged and vulnerable people?
Answer
Child poverty significantly impacts the health of disadvantaged and vulnerable populations, leading to a range of adverse outcomes. These effects are both immediate and long-term, affecting physical, mental, and developmental health.
Physical Health Impacts
Chronic Conditions: Children living in poverty are more likely to suffer from chronic health conditions such as asthma and obesity. Studies show that being born into poverty or experiencing multiple episodes of poverty increases the risk of these conditions (Yang-Huang et al., 2021; Bentley et al., 2021).
Nutrition and Growth: Poor nutrition and stunted growth are common among children in poverty, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, affecting their overall health and development (Victora et al., 2022).
Mental Health and Behavioural Effects
Mental Health Disorders: Poverty is linked to higher rates of mental health disorders in children, including anxiety and depression. The stress associated with poverty can lead to negative mental health outcomes (Schmidt et al., 2021; Li, Yin and Jiang, 2020).
Risk Behaviours: In disadvantaged regions, children in poverty are more likely to engage in risk behaviours such as substance abuse, which further impacts their health and social relationships (Fábián et al., 2024).
Developmental and Cognitive Outcomes
Cognitive Development: Early-life poverty can have lasting effects on cognitive development and educational attainment, limiting future opportunities and perpetuating the cycle of poverty (Victora et al., 2022; Sultanova, 2024).
Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL): Children in poverty often experience a lower HRQoL, with impacts on their physical and emotional well-being (Yang-Huang et al., 2021).
Socioeconomic and Structural Factors
Structural Racism and Inequality: In some regions, structural racism exacerbates the effects of poverty, leading to significant health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups (Heard-Garris et al., 2021).
Healthcare Access: Limited access to healthcare services further compounds the health challenges faced by children in poverty, making it difficult to address and manage health issues effectively (Lee et al., 2022; Singh, Zhu and Cheung, 2020).
Child poverty has profound and multifaceted impacts on health, affecting physical, mental, and developmental outcomes. Addressing these issues requires comprehensive strategies that include improving access to healthcare, education, and social support, as well as tackling structural inequalities that perpetuate poverty.
References
Schmidt, K., Merrill, S., Gill, R., Miller, G., Gadermann, A., & Kobor, M., 2021. Society to cell: How child poverty gets “Under the Skin” to influence child development and lifelong health. Developmental Review, 61, pp. 100983. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2021.100983
Yang-Huang, J., Van Grieken, A., You, Y., Jaddoe, V., Steegers, E., Duijts, L., Boelens, M., Jansen, W., & Raat, H., 2021. Changes in Family Poverty Status and Child Health. Pediatrics, 147. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2020-016717
Heard-Garris, N., Boyd, R., Kan, K., Pérez-Cardona, L., Heard, N., & Johnson, T., 2021. Structuring Poverty: How Racism Shapes Child Poverty and Child and Adolescent Health.. Academic pediatrics, 21 8S, pp. S108-S116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2021.05.026
Victora, C., Hartwig, F., Vidaletti, L., Martorell, R., Osmond, C., Richter, L., Stein, A., Barros, A., Adair, L., Barros, F., Bhargava, S., Horta, B., Kroker-Lobos, M., Lee, N., Menezes, A., Murray, J., Norris, S., Sachdev, H., Stein, A., Varghese, J., Bhutta, Z., & Black, R., 2022. Effects of early-life poverty on health and human capital in children and adolescents: analyses of national surveys and birth cohort studies in LMICs. The Lancet, 399, pp. 1741-1752. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(21)02716-1
Lee, A., Kingdon, C., Davie, M., Hawcutt, D., & Sinha, I., 2022. Child poverty and health inequalities in the UK: a guide for paediatricians. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 108, pp. 94 – 101. https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2021-323671
Fábián, G., Szoboszlai, K., Tóth, A., & Fedor, A., 2024. The Impact of Poverty on Children’s Well-Being and Health Behaviour Based on the Results of Research Conducted in One of Hungary’s Most Disadvantaged Micro-Regions. Children, 11. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11060624
Bentley, R., Simons, K., Kvelsvig, A., Milne, B., & Blakely, T., 2021. Short-run effects of poverty on asthma, ear infections and health service use: analysis of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children.. International journal of epidemiology. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyab059
Singh, G., Zhu, H., & Cheung, C., 2020. Public health for paediatricians: Fifteen-minute consultation on addressing child poverty in clinical practice. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 106, pp. 326 – 332. https://doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2020-319636
Sultanova, K., 2024. THE FAR-REACHING EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON CHILDREN: IMPACTS ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES. International Journal Of Management And Economics Fundamental. https://doi.org/10.37547/ijmef/volume04issue04-05
Li, C., Yin, X., & Jiang, S., 2020. Effects of multidimensional child poverty on children’s mental health in Mainland China. Journal of Health Psychology, 25, pp. 400 – 415. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105317718379
