Future of adolescent health to be shaped
Baku, April 30 (AZERTAC). Researchers from the Institute and the University of Melbourne are hoping to shape the future of adolescent health, by bringing into focus the risks and issues associated with this vulnerable age group.
In a special series on adolescent health published in the Lancet, Professor George Patton and Professor Susan Sawyer are calling for worldwide investment in the health and future of adolescents, based on research and grounded evidence about what works.
About half of the world's population is now younger than 25 years, with 1.8 billion adolescents. Today's adolescents are facing unprecedented changes in the world's social and physical environments. These changes are transforming adolescent development and, in so doing, changing the prospects for health now and in the future.
In the first paper of the series, which was led by Professor Sawyer, researchers say adolescents are now more exposed than previous generations to harmful alcohol consumption, illicit drug use, tobacco use and sexually transmitted infections, among other risks.
Professor Sawyer says the paper combines a wide range of research which shows there is a lack of focus on adolescent health, and that the preventable health risks initiated during adolescence commonly have lifelong consequences for health, highlighting the need to address the issue.
"Adolescence could be described as a missing link in the life course approach to health. The impacts of health-related behaviours that start in adolescents have impacts throughout their lives, for instance tobacco and alcohol use or obesity and physical inactivity contribute to the epidemic of non-infectious disease such as heart, disease, cancer, diabetes and lung disease."
At least 70 per cent of premature adult deaths reflect behaviours started or reinforced during adolescence. The link between adolescent and adult health suggests that evidence based investments in healthy adolescent development have enormous implications for future global health.
In the final paper in the series, led by Professor Patton, researchers analysed currently available international data that allow comparisons across countries. In low income countries the problems of HIV, TB and maternal mortality remain endemic in this group. With development many middle income countries are facing a new epidemic of injuries with very high rates in males in Eastern Europe and Latin America.
Lastly there is now a global problem with risks for NCDs in later life. "For the largest generation in the world's history, the available global profile of youth health is worrying. The high income world has been grappling with a rising tide of risks for non-communicable diseases, including the problems of obesity, physical inactivity, alcohol, tobacco and illicit drug use. This tide is now overwhelming many low and middle income countries that have yet been able to bring in measures to control the problems of injury, infectious disease and maternal mortality in this young age group," he said.
"The UN and its agencies have an urgent central role in aligning systems of data collection to provide a good understanding of a rapidly changing picture of global youth health."
Professor Patton also highlighted a lack of internationally comparable data in Australia. "We are a data-rich country in many ways but we cannot make easy comparisons about the health risks our adolescents face compared to the rest of the world. Sometimes we even have trouble making comparisons across the states."
"We should be monitoring and tracking important areas such as binge drinking in youth, tobacco use, illicit drug use and obesity. We know that with our mortality rates, we sit at 13th out of 27 high income countries with data - so in the middle of the pack. But we don't really have the full picture on how are young people are doing and if we want to improve on that ranking, it's difficult to know where to start."
Once the data has been collected, researchers say there needs to be goals set and effective preventative interventions based on good evidence.
They call for improved international data and monitoring systems on adolescent health. Lead author, Professor Patton says there is a need for better coordination across UN agencies to fill data gaps, as well as calling on each country around the world to produce a regular report on the health of its adolescents.
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