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News in Digest: Colic findings a tad schizophrenic
The Copenhagen Post
June 10th, 2018
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But then again, Denmark has some of the most inactive, healthy kids in Europe
“Boohoo! We don’t want to be worse than Italy!” (photo: Beth)
It was only seven months ago that a meta-analysis published by the Journal of Pediatrics confirmed that Danish babies cry significantly less than children in other countries – or at least the 28 mainly OECD countries included in the survey, which revealed British and Italian bambinos to be the noisiest.
Colic cases double
However, a study by the University of Southern Denmark reveals that 12,000 Danish babies have had chiropractic treatment to alleviate their colic – a condition that causes otherwise-healthy infants to have prolonged crying fits of around three hours a day.
The number has doubled in the last ten years, reports Politiken, and a number of research institutes have decided to join forces to investigate the effects of the treatment.
Urban kids most prone
Little has previously been known about childhood’s effect on schizophrenia, but now a new study by the Department of Bioscience and the Centre for Register Research at Aarhus University suggests those raised in urban areas are 50 percent more likely to develop the condition.
The scientists used satellite photos to map green spaces throughout Denmark between 1985 and 2013, and compared those maps with data from Denmark’s national registers for people born between 1985 and 2003 and whether they were subsequently diagnosed with schizophrenia.
Low obesity rate
The importance of avoiding childhood obesity is well documented, and Denmark has a right to be optimistic, as it has one of the lowest rates in Europe, according to figures from the World Health Organisation.
Just 18 percent of Danish boys aged 6-9, along with 20 percent of girls, are overweight, while 5 percent are obese (both genders), giving Denmark a similar result to France, Norway, Ireland and Latvia.
In Cyprus, Spain, Italy and Greece, in contrast, 40 percent of boys aged 6-9 are overweight, while around 20 percent are obese
Good eaters, but inactive
Amongst the other findings, 60 percent of Danish kids eat fruit every day and 52 percent consume vegetables, just 0.5 percent have savoury snacks more than three times a week, and only 8 percent consume soft drinks containing sugar on more than three days a week.
There was room for improvement, though, as 91 percent spend at least two hours a day looking at a screen over the weekend, only 36 percent walk or cycle to school, and sports club membership is lower than the European average.
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