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While observers acknowledge that the 2007–2008 crisis increased food insecurity, few studies considered how being food poor affects children's daily lives. In this paper, I discuss how children from low‐income families in Portugal experience food and deal with food scarcity. I draw on data from a larger European study, which employed a case study approach with a combination of semi‐structured interviews and photo‐elicitation. Children's accounts reveal how food poverty is embedded in their lives, affecting the quality and quantity of food, reducing opportunities to socialize with kin and friends and creating emotional stress. Visual methods added depth to our understanding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the importance of school meals in balancing food budgets and diets among 45 low‐income families in Portugal. Drawing on interviews with both parents and children (aged 11–15 years) we found that children's views on the quality of school meals affect their willingness to eat at school and heighten parental concerns with health, food and resources. For parents, school meals are crucial to ensure children's dietary variety and balancing tight food budgets. Schools' role in food poverty alleviation is also critically addressed, contributing to current and future sociological studies of children, school meals and food poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influence that social factors (relationship with teachers, peers and family support), future expectations, physical and psychological symptoms exert on the adolescents' tobacco and alcohol consumption is analyzed, and the differences between users and non‐users are analyzed as well. This work is part of the HBSC study. The results show that substance use is associated with more physical and psychological symptoms, worse relationship with teachers and peers, less family support, and lower future expectations. It is important to intervene towards the construction of more positive future expectations and relationships and the promotion of physical and psychological well‐being, as protective factors against substance use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study intends to provide insights into the lives of children who suffer from chronic pain and of their parents. A qualitative, multi‐modal approach was employed, using the draw, write and tell technique with seven children, and semi‐structured interviews with parents. By illustrating that children are active social agents in the management of chronic pain (even when they are understood by parents as vulnerable), the findings support recent sociological work in the field of childhood health. Indeed, the findings show that children with a chronic condition can take autonomous decisions in relation to disease management even when supervised by parents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of foster carers can be described as similar to the role of parents, but with some additional tasks. Through focus groups, children in care, young adults who are care‐experienced, foster carers, and social workers in England and Portugal shared their views on this role. Key themes included the need to promote children's sense of belonging and relationships with foster carers and their birth family, to support children's individual needs, and to recognise the influence of children's social care services, social workers and foster carers' family and social network. Foster carers and social workers in the English sample talked about the complementarity between the parenting side of the role and these additional tasks. On the other hand, children and young adults in both samples, and foster carers and social workers in the Portuguese sample, focused mostly on the parenting side of the role, but also stated the importance of some additional tasks, such as collaboration with children's birth families. These findings reflect policies and alternative care context differences between England and Portugal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]