The Academy of Medical Sciences and a broad coalition of leading health organisations and experts from the UK, US, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore and South Korea have come together to endorse a powerful statement calling for urgent action to address the worrying decline in children’s health and wellbeing across some high-income countries.
The ‘Thrive by five’ statement, which comes as the new Labour government takes power in the UK, highlights the critical importance of the early years of life, from preconception to age five, in shaping lifelong health outcomes. It also underscores the urgent need for governments to prioritise early childhood development, address growing inequities and establish the support frameworks necessary to drive transformational change.
With endorsement from organisations including the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science London, the Royal Society of New Zealand and Singapore National Academy of Sciences, the statement outlines five priority areas for policymakers:
- Put children and families at the heart of developing solutions for better health, wellbeing and equity.
- Address inequities driven by poverty, discrimination, racism and other social determinants through a unifying vision across sectors.
- Commit to sustained, coordinated policies and funding to drive transformational change to tackle inequities and improve child health and wellbeing over generations.
- Implement the solutions that we already have a strong evidence-base for, working closely with children and families.
- Support cross-border and interdisciplinary research to investigate factors affecting young children’s health and wellbeing.
The statement was agreed at an international policy workshop convened by the UK Academy, which brought together more than 40 experts from across the world to review the current state of play and initiatives being taken to improve child health and address inequities. Participants included parent representatives, researchers and policy professionals.
Ngawai Moss, a parent who participated in the workshop, said: “When children are healthy and happy, they thrive and bring joy to our lives. And that in itself is good for our health. The ‘Thrive by five’ statement is important because it shows that many issues faced by parents are common across high-income countries. By addressing these challenges head-on, we can support one another to implement effective solutions, creating a more unified and compassionate approach to child health globally. I hope the statement will make decision-makers think about child health in a more holistic way. It’s not just about one child, but about the impact on our families, communities and society as a whole.”
Dan Segetin, a parent from New Zealand who also participated in the workshop, added: “As a parent, I feel the importance of child health cannot be underestimated, nor can it be seen as a moment in time – child health provides the foundation for the rest of a person’s life. The ‘Thrive by five’ statement addresses important aspects beyond the direct health sector, such as poverty, education and housing, which are vital in creating an environment for children to be healthy. I hope this call to action will generate cohesive, visionary change that cuts through any political divide and brings a lasting positive impact for all families and their children, regardless of their level of need.”
The statement comes off the back of a major report published by the Academy of Medical Sciences earlier this year, which highlighted that the health of under-fives in the UK is now worse than 60% of comparable countries. Issues such as infant mortality, obesity and tooth decay are rising, while vaccination rates have fallen below World Health Organization safety levels.
Professor Rosalind Smyth FMedSci, Vice-President (Clinical) at the Academy of Medical Sciences, said: “The first five years of a child's life are crucial for establishing the foundations for lifelong health and wellbeing. However, in many countries, including the UK, we are seeing a deterioration in young children's health, with those from more disadvantaged backgrounds experiencing the worst outcomes.
"Investing in early childhood development is not only the right thing to do for our children, but it also makes sound economic sense with reduced healthcare costs, increased productivity and stronger economic growth. As our statement sets out, we need a unifying, cross-sectoral vision, which will enable governments to implement policies to address the inequities that are driving poor health. Critically, children and families must be at the heart of developing and implementing solutions."
Leading experts are now calling on governments worldwide to act on these findings and the ‘thrive by five’ priority areas as a matter of urgency.
Participating Academy and society statement endorsements:
- Academy of Medical Sciences
- Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science London
- Royal Society Te Apārangi
- Singapore National Academy of Science
Further endorsements:
- Cambridge Children’s Hospital
- World Federation of Public Health Associations
- UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health
- University of Liverpool
- The Global Maternal and Child Oral Health Center at Seoul National University
- Edwin SH Leong Centre for Healthy Children, University of Toronto
The policy workshop was supported through the International Science Partnerships Fund (ISPF). ISPF is managed by the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, and delivered by a consortium of the UK’s leading research bodies, including the UK National Academies.