Between 2004 and 2009, the number of 3rd year caries-free pupils increased and obesity stabilized. Positive points which should not obscure the persistence of social inequalities.
Less overweight, decayed teeth… the health of young adolescents is improving. Between 2004 and 2009, national surveys on the health of third-graders reveal that the epidemic of overweight and obesity has stabilized. Thus, over this period, the frequency of overweight students is around 17.5%, and the frequency of obesity has increased from 4.4% to 3.9%. On the oral level, the proportion of adolescents who have had no cavities increases from 52% to 56%. Last positive sign, the vaccination coverage against measles has increased: 84% against 66% in 2004.
These encouraging developments can be explained in part by campaigns to recommend food or oral health. For the authors of the survey published by the Ministry of Health (DREES), the device “ M’T teeth “And the measurements of National health nutrition plan (PNNS) contributed to raising awareness among children and parents.
However, the improvement is clouded by the persistence of social inequalities. For example, if the frequency of overweight is graded according to social origin, it goes from 12% among children of managers to 22% among children of workers. Another striking illustration of these inequalities is vision problems. Children with at least one parent who is a manager are 33% to wear glasses or corrective lenses against 22% for the children of workers. “This difference partly reflects a lack of screening and care in the less privileged settings”, note the authors of the study. They find that, among children without glasses, the children of workers have more often (10%) a myopia detected during the examination in third than the children of executives (6%).
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