High Socioeconomic Status Children Research Articles

A multivariate multilevel approach to unravel the associations between individual and school factors on children's motor performance in the REACT project.

The aim was to (1) estimate the relationship between physical fitness (PF) and object control fundamental movement skills (FMS), (2) identify child characteristics that relate with PF and FMS, and (3) examine associations between the school environment, PF, and FMS. The sample included 1014 Portuguese children aged 6-10 years from the REACT project. PF was assessed via running speed, shuttle run, standing long jump, handgrip, and the PACER test. Object control FMS were assessed with stationary dribble, kick, catch, overhand throw, and underhand roll. Test performances were transformed into z-scores, and their sum was expressed as overall PF and FMS. Child-level variables included body mass index (BMI) z-scores, accelerometer-measured sedentary time and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, and socioeconomic status (SES). School size, physical education classes, practice areas, and equipment were also assessed. Approximately, 90% of the variance in object control PF and FMS was at the child level, and 10% at the school level. The correlation between PF and object control FMS was .62, which declined to .43 with the inclusion of covariates. Older, more active, and higher SES children had higher object control PF and FMS, and boys outperformed girls. BMI was negatively associated with PF but not with object control FMS. Sedentary time and number of physical education classes were not significant predictors. Most school predictors did not jointly associate with PF and object control FMS. PF and object control FMS z-scores were moderately related. Not all child characteristics were associated with both PF and object control FMS, and their effect sizes were different. School characteristics only explained 10% of the total variation in PF and object control FMS.

Anticipated scarcity and stockpiling during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of perceived threat, childhood SES and materialism.

Previous research has shown that perceived existential threat experienced during or shortly after the first wave of the global COVID-19 pandemic, engendered anticipated scarcity and stockpiling behavior. However, the relationship between anticipated scarcity and stockpiling may not hold unambiguously for everyone. Across two studies and one preregistered replication (N = 644), we show that perceived threat of COVID-19 is associated with stockpiling tendencies by increasing the anticipation of product scarcity-a resource threat. The association between anticipated product scarcity and stockpiling depends, however, on childhood socio-economic status (SES) and materialism. For individuals with low childhood SES, the anticipation of product scarcity was only associated with stockpiling among those who valued materialism. Individuals with high childhood SES, by contrast, stockpiled in response to anticipated scarcity regardless of their level of materialism. Our findings qualify previous literature on the association between perceived threat of COVID-19, anticipated scarcity and stockpiling during the COVID-19 pandemic and help reconcile contradictory predictions about the role of childhood SES in individuals' consumption behavior in response to adversity.

Abstract MP44: Non-Genetic Component of Height as a Surrogate Marker for Childhood Socioeconomic Status and Its Association With Cardiovascular and Brain Health: Results From HCHS/SOL

Introduction: Childhood socioeconomic status (SES) has been recognized to have lifelong effects on health, but often studies rely on recollected information subject to bias. Several studies suggest taller adult height is a surrogate for favorable childhood SES, likely due to better nutrition during skeletal development. We aimed to parse out the non-genetic component of height as a refined surrogate marker of childhood SES. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that the higher non-genetic component of height is associated with higher childhood SES, and further, with better cardiovascular and brain health in adulthood. Methods: Self-reported information such as parental education, nativity (born in US 50 states/DC), age at migration, and economic hardship to pay for basic needs and access to household utilities during childhood were collected from US Hispanics/Latinos aged 18-74 years in HCHS/SOL (2008-2011). A non-genetic component of height (height non-pgs ) was estimated by subtracting genetically predicted height from the measured height, where a height genetic prediction model was fitted on sex-standardized height with Hispanic-specific height polygenic score (height pgs ), genetic ancestry components, and sex. The AHA-LE8 cardiovascular health (CVH) clinical score was derived. Neurocognitive function (6-item screener, Spanish English Verbal Learning Test, Word fluency test, Digit symbol substitution test) was assessed among >45 years. We examined the associations of height non-pgs with childhood environment and health outcomes by survey linear regressions. Results: A higher height non-pgs was associated with better childhood environment - younger generation (mean height non-pgs = 0.37 (SE=0.02) for born in 1980-1999 vs -0.45 (0.03) for born in 1930-1949), higher parental education (0.28 (0.02) for college vs -0.11 (0.02) for elementary), US born or migrated at younger age, and availability of plumbing, electricity, and phone during childhood - but not with childhood economic hardship. Further, height non-pgs was positively associated with better cognitive functions in all domains, adjusting for demographics, participants’ SES, and cardiovascular risk factors. These associations with height non-pgs were more pronounced than those with measured height. Height non-pgs showed positive associations with better clinical CVH score among 45+ aged people. Among <45 years, height non-pgs was negatively associated with clinical CVH score. Conclusions: We observed that height non-pgs reflects childhood SES, potentially through better nutrition and greater access to resources that promote growth. Stronger associations of height non-pgs and health, compared to associations with measured height, suggest that height non-pgs is a good proxy for childhood environment. The paradoxical association of height non-pgs with CVH among <45 years old needs further investigation.

Factors associated with Mediterranean diet adherence in a sample of high socio-economic status children from southern Spain.

The present study examined the association of BMI, fat mass, physical activity engagement (PA), maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max), screen time and academic performance (AP) with Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence in a sample of high socio-economic status (SES) children. A non-randomised design was used. A multilinear regression model was developed using backward elimination. Analysis included variables pertaining to age, BMI, VO2max, fat percentage, AP, PA engagement and screen time. All participants had a high SES and so this variable was not included as a predictor. Data met the assumptions required for multiple regressions in terms of linearity, homoscedasticity, normality, independence and non-multicollinearity. Two state and three mixed funding schools in Granada, Spain. Data were collected from 244 children aged between 10 and 12 years. Better AP, higher PA engagement and lower screen time were found to be predictive of MD adherence. These variables explained 22·9 % of the variance in data measuring adolescent MD adherence. The present study suggests that, in addition to SES, PA, AP and screen time are important components to consider when targeting improvements in MD adherence in children. It is, therefore, concluded that interventions targeting improvements in PA, AP and screen time are needed to promote MD adherence in children, regardless of SES.

Childhood circumstances, social mobility and the obesity transition: Evidence from South Africa

The distribution of obesity tends to shift from rich to poor individuals as countries develop, in a process of shifting sociodemographic patterns of obesity that has been called the ‘obesity transition’. This change tends to happen with economic development, but little is known about the specific mechanisms that drive the change. We propose that improvements in childhood circumstances with economic development may be one of the drivers of the obesity transition. We explore whether the social gradient in body weight differs by childhood socioeconomic status (SES), proxied by the respondent’s mother having Grade 12, using South Africa’s nationally representative panel National Income Dynamics Study. In support of our hypothesis, we find that the social gradient in body weight is less positive for adults who had a high childhood SES, and already appears to have reversed among high-SES women who also had a high childhood SES. Upward social mobility over an individual’s life course or across a single generation is associated with higher body weight compared to a stable high SES. But a high SES sustained in childhood and adulthood – or across more than one generation – may decrease adult obesity risk, and result in a reversal of the social gradient in body weight. Random effects within-between models show that the social gradient in body weight and its interaction with childhood SES are driven more by differences in income between individuals than by short-run changes in income within individuals, again suggesting that the obesity transition is driven by long-run changes rather than by very short-run changes. Our results are broadly robust to using several alternative measures of body weight, childhood SES and adult SES. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that widespread improvements in childhood circumstances and nutrition with economic development may contribute to the shift to later stages of the obesity transition.

Uptake of a Universal Sports Subsidy Program for School-Aged Children: A Population Data Analysis.

Around 40% of Australian children do not participate in sport. Cost is a major barrier to participation, particularly for children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This study aimed to evaluate the uptake of a population-level children's sports subsidy scheme, including sociodemographic differences in uptake. A state-wide cross-sectional analysis comparing sports voucher claimants (primary school-aged children with a valid Medicare or Australian visa number) from the 2019 financial year with population census data from South Australia. Chi-square was used to examine whether the percentage of eligible children who claimed a voucher differed based on age, sex, socioeconomic status (SES), and geographical remoteness. Subgroup analyses were conducted for the lowest 2 socioeconomic disadvantage deciles, split by gender. Scatterplots were used to compare sports between high and low SES children. A total of 74,668 children claimed sports vouchers (45.5% of eligible children). Children who were relatively younger, female, from low socioeconomic backgrounds, and from major cities were least likely to claim the voucher. The 5 most common sports were Australian rules football (30.2%), netball (13.6%), soccer (13.1%), gymnastics (10.4%), and basketball (5.7%), with the popular sports similar for high and low SES children. Future work is needed to understand how Sports Voucher, and sport participation rates have changed over time, and to improve voucher uptake among girls, city dwellers, and low SES children.

Breastfeeding is associated with the intelligence of school-age children in Mexico.

Breastfeeding has been consistently associated with higher intelligence since childhood. However, this relation could be confounded due to maternal selection bias. We estimated the association between predominant breastfeeding and intelligence in school-age children considering potential selection bias and we simulated the intelligence gap reduction between low versus higher socioeconomic status children by increasing breastfeeding. We analysed predominant breastfeeding practices (breastmilk and water-based liquids) of children 0-3 years included in the Mexican Family Life Survey (MxFLS-1). Intelligence was estimated as the z-score of the abbreviated Raven score, measured at 6-12 years in the MxFLS-2 or MxFLS-3. We predicted breastfeeding duration among children with censored data with a Poisson model. We used the Heckman selection model to assess the association between breastfeeding and intelligence, correcting for selection bias and stratified by socioeconomic status. Results show after controlling for selection bias, a 1-month increase in predominant breastfeeding duration was associated with a 0.02 SD increase in the Raven z-score (p < 0.05). The children who were predominantly breastfed for 4-6 months versus <1 month had 0.16 SD higher Raven z-score (p < 0.05). No associations were found using multiple linear regression models. Among low socioeconomic status children, increasing predominantly breastfeeding duration to 6 months would increase their mean Raven z-score from -0.14 to -0.07 SD and reduce by 12.5% the intelligence gap with high socioeconomic status children. In conclusion, predominant breastfeeding duration was significantly associated with childhood intelligence after controlling for maternal selection bias. Increased breastfeeding duration may reduce poverty-driven intelligence inequities.

The Systemic Availability of Indispensable Amino Acids from Orally Ingested Algal and Legume Protein in Young Children at Risk of Environmental Enteric Dysfunction

BackgroundThe digestion and absorption of ingested protein may be reduced in children with environmental enteric dysfunction (EED), reducing systemic amino acid availability for protein synthesis with resultant growth faltering. This has not been directly measured in children with EED and associated growth faltering. ObjectivesTo evaluate the systemic availability of algal (spirulina) and legume (mung bean) indispensable amino acids (IAAs) in children with EED. MethodsIndian children (18–24 mo) from urban slums were assigned to EED (n = 24) or no-EED (control, n = 17) groups based on the lactulose rhamnose test, where the lactulose rhamnose ratio cutoff for diagnosing EED (≥0.068) was the mean + 2SD of its distribution in healthy, age-, and sex-matched children of high socioeconomic status. Fecal biomarkers of EED were also measured. Systemic IAA availability was calculated from the plasma: meal IAA enrichment ratio for each protein. True ileal mung bean IAA digestibility was measured by the dual isotope tracer method using spirulina protein as reference. Co-administration of free 13C6-phenylalanine allowed for estimating true ileal phenylalanine digestibility of both proteins, and a phenylalanine absorption index. ResultsThere was no significant difference (independent t-test) in the systemic IAA availability from spirulina or mung bean protein between EED and no-EED groups. There was no between-group difference in true ileal phenylalanine digestibility and its absorption index, or in mung bean IAA digestibility. ConclusionsThe systemic IAA availability of algal and legume protein, or the latter’s IAA/phenylalanine digestibility, is not significantly reduced in children with EED and does not correlate with linear growth.This study was registered in Clinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI) with registration number: CTRI/2017/02/007921.

The relationship between childhood asthma and socioeconomic status: a Korean nationwide population-based study.

This study aimed to investigate associations of socioeconomic status (SES) with asthma exacerbation and asthma-related hospital utilization factors among children with asthma in the Republic of Korea. This study retrospectively analyzed population-level data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service, collected from 2013 through 2019. SES was classified into five categories according to the national health insurance premiums quantiles (0 [lowest] to 4 [highest]). The hazard ratios (HRs) for asthma exacerbation, emergency department (ED) visits, hospital admission, and intensive care unit (ICU) admission were analyzed with respect to SES. Among the five SES groups, SES group 0 (medical aid), had the highest tallies and proportions of children who experienced asthma exacerbations (n = 1,682, 4.8%), ED visits (n = 932, 2.6%), hospital admission (n = 2,734, 7.7%) and ICU admission (n = 14, 0.04%). Compared with SES group 4, SES group 0 had adjusted HRs of 3.73 (p = 0.0113) and 1.04 (p < 0.0001) for ventilator support/tracheal intubation and administration of systemic corticosteroids, respectively. Relative to group 4, the adjusted HRs for ED visits, hospital admission, and ICU admission in group 0 were 1.88 (p < 0.0001), 2.20 (p < 0.0001), and 7.12 (p < 0.0001), respectively. In the survival analysis, group 0 had a significantly higher risk of ED presentation, hospital admission, and ICU admission than the other groups (log-rank p < 0.001). Compared with children of higher SES, those in the lowest SES group had increased risk of asthma exacerbation, hospital admission, and receiving treatment for severe asthma symptoms.

Childhood Residential Mobility and Mental and Physical Health in Later Life: Findings From the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study.

The study objective was to investigate the effects of childhood residential mobility on older adult physical and mental health. In REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study, we used linear regression models to investigate if number of moves during childhood predicted mental and physical health (SF-12 MCS, PCS), adjusting for demographic covariates, childhood socioeconomic status (SES), childhood social support, and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). We investigated interaction by age, race, childhood SES, and ACEs. People who moved more during childhood had poorer MCS scores, β = -0.10, SE = 0.05, p = 0.03, and poorer PCS scores, β = -0.25, SE = 0.06, p < 0.0001. Effects of moves on PCS were worse for Black people compared to White people (p = 0.06), those with low childhood SES compared to high childhood SES (p = 0.02), and high ACEs compared to low ACEs (p = 0.01). As family instability accompanying residential mobility, family poverty, and adversity disproportionately affect health, Black people may be especially disadvantaged.

The Environmental and Social Risk Factors for Myopia in Children and Adolescents in Bangladesh

Background: The seriousness of myopia is still underappreciated by the general population. One in five occurrences of blindness may be traced back to uncorrected refractive error (The discrepancy between the patient's vision at presentation and their best-corrected vision). Objective: In this study our main goal is to evaluate the environmental and social risk factors for myopia in children and adolescents in Bangladesh. Method: This prospective cohort research conducted at a major medical center to investigate prenatal through adult risk factors for poor health and noncommunicable illnesses in young people. The study began in July 2020, and 100 people have been asked to participate in yearly follow-ups for two years. The majority of the people living there are from the Dhaka metropolitan area. Schools, daycares, community clinics, general practices, public health agencies, and collaborative research projects are just few of the places where participants are sought for recruitment. Results: During the study, 60% were in 11-18 years age group, 55% were male and 35% were in middle income group. 10% myopia had 3-10 years age group and 21% myopia in 11-18 years age group. 80% patients had everyday outdoor frequency, followed by 50% had 1-2 hours outdoor frequency, 60% had everyday near work frequency. There was a significant associations of myopia with low outdoor activity frequency, high near work duration and low near work frequency. Outdoor activity duration was not significantly associated with myopia. Conclusion: The results of our study indicate that regular sun exposure and limiting the amount of time spent in constant close work may help prevent the development of eye diseases. Furthermore, our cohort found that children of higher socioeconomic status were less likely to be myopic. Strategy development for myopia prevention in children of all ages should be prioritized in light of the massive economic burden imposed by the condition and the apparent ............

Early childhood education attendance and school readiness in low- and middle-income countries: The moderating role of family socioeconomic status

This study examined associations between attendance at early childhood education (ECE) programs and school readiness, and the extent to which the ECE–school readiness association is moderated by family socioeconomic status (SES). Data were from 58 low- and middle-income countries (N = 165,875, Mage = 47.52 months). Multilevel analysis showed that ECE attendance was positively associated with total and domain-specific school readiness, in addition to the role of family SES. The association was of medium effect size for literacy–numeracy readiness and small effect size for learning and socioemotional readiness. The ECE–school readiness association was moderated by family SES, although this varied by school readiness domains. While the ECE–literacy–numeracy association was stronger for high SES children (i.e., leveraging effect), the ECE–learning readiness association was stronger for lower SES peers (i.e., compensatory effect). No SES differences were observed for socioemotional competency (i.e., additive effect). Our findings suggest that although ECE attendance plays a significant role in developing school readiness competencies in LMIC contexts, it is strongly geared towards cognitive outcomes and therefore requiring a focus on other developmental domains. Additionally, for ECE to help close the SES gap in children’s school readiness and subsequent learning outcomes, policy makers must pay attention to increasing both the quantity and quality ECE of provision for children from low SES backgrounds.

Childhood measures of socioeconomic status and cognitive decline in the LifeAfter90 Study

AbstractBackgroundChildhood socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with cognitive functioning in adulthood. It is not known if this relationship endures in the oldest old. We examined the associations of subjective and objective childhood SES with baseline cognition and cognitive decline in the LifeAfter90 (LA90) cohort.MethodLA90 is an ongoing diverse cohort of individuals aged 90+ without dementia diagnoses at recruitment. In our analytic sample (n = 341), we operationalized objective childhood SES as maternal education (range 0‐20 years); paternal education was substituted in 14% of cases missing maternal education. Subjective childhood SES was assessed using the MacArthur Scale of Subjective Social Status in which participants ranked their childhood SES using an unnumbered 10‐rung ladder picture (coded continuously with 1 = lowest SES and 10 = highest SES). Executive function (EF), semantic memory (SM), and verbal episodic memory (VEM) were assessed using the Spanish and English Neuropsychological Assessment Scales and z‐standardized to baseline. Mixed effects models estimated the associations between each childhood SES marker and level and change in each cognitive domain, adjusting for baseline age, time since baseline, gender, race and ethnicity, practice effects, and interview mode (phone vs. in‐person). We tested for the association between childhood SES measures and cognitive change by interacting SES measures with time.ResultParticipants completed an average of 3 visits (range 1‐6) each 6 months apart. On average, participants were about 93 years old (SD = 2.2), and 63% were female (Table 1). Mean parental education was 9.8 years (SD = 4.6; range = 0‐20); mean ladder score was 7.1 (SD = 2.4). Higher objective childhood SES was associated with better baseline EF (Figure 1: β = 0.03; 95% CI = 0.02, 0.05) and SM (β = 0.03; 95% CI = 0.02, 0.05). Having higher subjective childhood SES was associated with a slower decline in EF (Table 2: β = 0.02; 95% CI = 0.01, 0.04).ConclusionObjective measures of childhood SES were associated with baseline cognition and subjective childhood SES was associated with slower EF decline among the oldest‐old. High childhood SES may increase chances of surviving past age 90, a selection bias which would attenuate the associations we observed. Our results suggest the long arm of childhood may extend throughout the first century of life.

Is childhood or midlife socioeconomic status more predictive of brain health across race/ethnicity?

AbstractBackgroundLower lifecourse socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with worse cognition and greater risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Parental level of educational attainment is one indicator of childhood SES, which predicts myriad health outcomes throughout the lifespan. It is unclear whether midlife SES moderates the impact of childhood SES on midlife outcomes, like brain health. Subgroup differences are important for future risk reduction efforts; therefore, we tested whether midlife SES modifies the influence of childhood SES similarly in White, Black, and Latinx middle‐aged adults.MethodParticipants were 569 middle‐aged older adults drawn from the Offspring study of Racial/Ethnic Disparities in AD (adult children of WHICAP participants), who received MRI (mean age = 54.5 (SD = 10.6) years; 46 non‐Latinx White, 131 non‐Latinx Black, 392 Latinx; 66% women). We used general linear models to examine the relationship of childhood SES (e.g., parental education) with MRI markers of cerebrovascular disease (e.g., white matter hyperintensity volume; WMH) and whether MSES (e.g., educational attainment) moderated this relationship, controlling for sex/gender and age.ResultWhite participants were more likely to have higher childhood SES (F(2,568) = 199.3, p&lt;.001) and MSES (F(2,568) = 36.1, p&lt;.001), followed by Black, then Latinx participants. In the full sample, childhood SES was not associated with WMH volume. Race/ethnicity stratified models revealed that greater childhood SES was associated with lower WMH volume, but only in White participants (B = ‐0.60, CI = ‐0.109,‐0.010). Midlife SES was not associated with WMH volume in the full sample or within each race/ethnicity group. Among White participants, midlife SES did not modify the effect of childhood SES on WMH volume. Midlife SES was unrelated to WMH volume in Black and Latinx participants.ConclusionWe found that childhood SES predicts brain health in middle aged White people. We found racial and ethnic subgroup differences in the relationship of socioeconomic indicators to brain health. However, future studies aim to further understand mechanisms of brain health disparities by considering other SES indicators than parental and offspring education, larger subgroup sample sizes, absolute versus relative SES mobility, other lived experiences, and cognitive outcomes.

Measurement invariance of the Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire across college status, race, and childhood SES in a diverse community sample.

The Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (YAACQ) was designed to measure the various domains of alcohol-related problems experienced by emerging adults (EAs), but has primarily been used in college samples and it remains unclear whether the psychometric properties of the YAACQ function similarly in racially and economically diverse populations. The present study assessed the factor structure and evaluated measurement invariance, latent mean differences, and correlates of the 48-item eight-factor YAACQ across college status, race, and childhood socioeconomic status (SES). EAs ages 21.5-25 (N = 602; 57.3% female, 47.0% White, 41.5 % Black, 35.4% noncollege EAs) who consumed 3/4 + alcoholic beverages (for women/men) at least twice in the previous month completed measures of alcohol use, alcohol-related consequences and demographics. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the 48-item eight-factor structure across the entire sample. However, one item related to academic achievement was predictably endorsed by few noncollege EAs and thus, was dropped. Multiple-group CFA demonstrated measurement invariance of a revised 47-item eight-factor YAACQ across college status, race, and childhood SES. Assessment of latent mean differences revealed that noncollege EAs reported more alcohol-related consequences overall, compared to college students, including greater endorsement of severe problem domains. White EAs reported more total alcohol-related consequences relative to Black EAs, and EAs of low childhood SES reported more total alcohol-related consequences compared to those of high childhood SES. Furthermore, all eight alcohol consequence factors demonstrated concurrent associations with weekly alcohol use, binge drinking, and high intensity drinking within each subgroup. Findings suggest that the YAACQ is a psychometrically robust measure of alcohol-related consequences across demographic groups. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

The impact of childhood environments on the sunk‐cost fallacy

AbstractThe sunk‐cost fallacy is a well‐documented cognitive bias in the decision‐making literature. Although the emerging literature on childhood socioeconomic status suggests that early‐life environments shape individuals' decision strategies and have a long‐lasting impact on their decisions, little is known about the impact of childhood socioeconomic status on the sunk‐cost fallacy. Using two different scenarios and an actual choice task, we provide converging evidence that individuals who grew up in resource‐scarce environments (those with lower childhood socioeconomic status) are reluctant to abandon inferior choices merely because they have already invested substantial resources in them, resulting in the sunk‐cost fallacy. This fallacy occurs because individuals with lower childhood socioeconomic status tend to perceive the loss of their prior investments as more wasteful than those with higher childhood socioeconomic status.

Association of Obesity with Food Choices among Children Between Age Group of 5 To 12 Years in Different Areas of Lahore

The relationship between the socioeconomic status (SES) of parents and the effect of socio-economic status on the food intake pattern of their children was examined in this study. Children of low SES generally have poorer diets than children of high SES. Objective: To observe the association of child obesity with food choices in different areas of Lahore Methods: Data were collected from 38 participants, from different areas of Lahore, Pakistan. From which 20 were female and 18 were male children. Their parents were requested to solve a questionnaire which comprised of different questions related to child age, height, weight, eating habits and parent’s socioeconomic status and their education. Results: Study showed that children growing up in families with a lower SES had a higher body mass index (BMI), lower quality of life, less healthy nutrition, and less physical activity as compared to children growing up in families with a higher SES. The food frequency questionnaire showed that children belonging to lower SES consumed 17% grains, 18% dairy sources, 16% vegetables, 12% pluses and lentils, 0% meat, 11% fruits, and 13% tea and coffee in a day. While children belonging to higher SES consumed 17% grains, 29% dairy sources, 6% vegetables, 2% pulses and lentils, 13% meat, 13% fruits, and 7% tea and coffee daily. Conclusions: SES has an exquisite impact at the food alternatives and food intake among college-going youngsters. Lower SES children devour greater veggies, less meat, and dairy products at the same time as better SES kids devour fewer vegetables and extra meat and dairy products. Children from DHA were more obese and they were consuming more protein based diet and practicing sedentary life style.

The relationships between school children's wellbeing, socio-economic disadvantage and after-school activities: a cross-sectional study

BackgroundLower socioeconomic status is associated with poorer wellbeing among children. Identifying how children participate in after-school activities and how after-school activities are associated with wellbeing may inform interventions to improve wellbeing among children from low socioeconomic backgrounds. This study explored whether children’s after-school activities varied by socioeconomic status and examined the associations between after-school activities and wellbeing in low socioeconomic status children.MethodsThis study analysed cross-sectional data from 61,759 school students in years 4 to 9 who completed the 2018 South Australian Wellbeing and Engagement Collection. Students reported the number of days per week they participated in 12 activities (after-school care, homework, music lessons or practice, youth organisations, sports, television, videogames, social media, reading, chores, arts and crafts, and socialising with friends) during the after-school period (3-6 pm) and their wellbeing (happiness, sadness, worry, engagement, perseverance, optimism, emotion regulation, and life satisfaction). Socioeconomic status was measured by parents' highest education level obtained from school enrolment data. Linear multilevel models were used to examine whether frequency of after-school activities varied by socioeconomic status. Multilevel ordered logit models were used to analyse the association between after-school activities and wellbeing amongst participants in the low socioeconomic status category.ResultsAfter-school activities differed according to socioeconomic status; high socioeconomic status children did more frequent sport, homework, and reading and low socioeconomic status children did more frequent screen-based activities (TV, videogames and social media). Among children from low socioeconomic status backgrounds, higher wellbeing was associated most consistently with more frequent sports participation, homework, reading and spending time with friends and less frequent videogames, social media and after-school care.ConclusionsChildren's wellbeing is positively associated with socioeconomic status. Amongst children from disadvantaged backgrounds, participating in sport, spending time with friends and getting less screen time may be protective for wellbeing. The results suggest that programming targeted at increasing sports participation and reducing screen time amongst children from low socioeconomic status backgrounds may support their wellbeing.

Incidence and risk factors related to anxiety of children and adolescents before elective surgery.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the preoperative anxiety in children and adolescents and to identify some of the risk factors associated with the incidence of anxiety in 9–18 years old group. Children and adolescents 9–18 years old hospitalized the night before elective surgeries were analyzed in terms of incidence and severity of anxiety using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) measure. Of the 164 patients, 111 (67.6%) suffered from preoperative anxiety. The incidence of anxiety in children aged 9–12 was 2.88 times the anxiety of those aged 12–18 (OR = 2.88) (1.65, 5.98). Moreover, the incidence of anxiety in only children was 0.65 times that of children with siblings (OR = 0.78) (0.11,2.93), and in patients with a history of hospitalization, the incidence was 1.85 times the stress in children without hospitalization history (OR = 1.85)(1.31,3.99); finally, the incidence of anxiety in children of higher socioeconomic status was lower compared with those of lower socioeconomic status (OR = 0.13) (0.08,0.35). Having close frend or family in the healthcare staff decreased the prevalence (OR = 0.64 (0.23,1.79) and severity of anxiety (47.02 ± 5.48 vs. 54.18 ± 7.18) (P-value = 0.001). There was no relationship between gender and the incidence of anxiety (OR = 1). Incidence of preoperative anexiety in foriner was1.72 times of persion patients (OR=1.72) (0.99,4.25). The severity of anxiety was lower in boys (46.22 ± 6.68) compared with girls (52.55 ± 7.52) (P-value = 0.002) and lower in patients of medium-to-high socioeconomic status (43.64 ± 5.45) compared with those with lower socioeconomic status (49.66 ± 6.49) (P-value = 0.003). There was no relationship between being an only child and severity of anxiety (P-value = 0.54) (48.31 ± 5.05 vs. 48.12 ± 6.81). However, anxiety was more severe in patients with a history of hospitalization (50.55 ± 4.64) (49.2 ± 6.23) (P-value = 0.09). Severity of anexiety was not dependent to nationality of patients(P-value = 0.6) .Taken together, our data suggest that various methods should be used to reduce anxiety and associated complications, regarding the high prevalence of anxiety in mentioned groups of children and adolescents.

The influence of childhood socioeconomic status on non-communicable disease risk factor clustering and multimorbidity among adults in Botswana: a life course perspective.

Childhood socioeconomic circumstances have a great influence on the health of individuals in adult life. We used cross-sectional data from a non-communicable disease (NCD) survey conducted in 2016, and respondents aged ≥15 y were selected from 3 cities/towns, 15 urban villages and 15 rural areas using a multistage probability-sampling technique. The total sample for the study was 1178. Two multinomial logistic regression models were fitted to data to ascertain the association between childhood socioeconomic status (SES) and NCD risk factor clustering and multimorbidity, using SPSS version 27. All comparisons were considered to be statistically significant at a 5% level. The prevalence of multiple NCD risk factors and multimorbidity was 30.1 and 5.3%, respectively. The odds of reporting NCD risk factor clustering were significantly high among individuals who reported low (adjusted OR [AOR]=1.88, 95% CI 1.21 to 2.78) and middle (AOR=1.22, 95% CI 1.02 to 2.05) childhood SES compared with high childhood SES. Conversely, individuals from a low SES background were more likely to report both single (AOR=1.17, 95% CI 1.00 to 2.01) and multiple NCD conditions (AOR=1.78, 95% CI 1.11 to 2.68) compared with those with a high childhood SES background. There is a need to stimulate policy debate and research to take cognisance of childhood socioeconomic circumstances in health policy planning.