Child health is in crisis as government ignores widening inequalities, paediatricians warn

Paediatricians are seeing worsening outcomes in all aspects of child health in the UK, with children in the most deprived areas facing the worst of the crisis.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) said that oral health, nutrition, respiratory health, mental health, and general wellbeing were all being adversely affected. Government data collected before the current crisis in the cost of living “paints a terrifying picture,” where children from the most deprived areas are far more likely to have dental decay, obesity, and asthma—and the situation is only getting worse, the college warned.

It highlighted recent data showing that nearly a third of children in the UK, some …