1. Relationships between social spending and childhood obesity in OECD countries: an ecological study
- Author
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Ahmed Taher Masoud, Mohamed Sayed Zaazouee, Sarah Makram Elsayed, Khaled Mohamed Ragab, Esraa M Kamal, Yusra T Alnasser, Ahmed Assar, Anas Z Nourelden, Loai J Istatiah, Mohamed M Abd-Elgawad, Ahmed T Abdelsattar, Ahmed A Sofy, Doaa G Hegazy, Victor Z Femía, Adriana R Mendonça, Fatma M Sayed, Ahmed Elmoursi, Alaa Alareidi, Ahmed K Abd-Eltawab, Mohamed Abdelmonem, Omar M Mohammed, EzzEldeen A Derballa, Kareem A El-Fas, Mohamed M. Abdel-Daim, and Abdelrahman I. Abushouk
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Early childhood education ,Pediatric Obesity ,Adolescent ,Gross Domestic Product ,media_common.quotation_subject ,030209 endocrinology & metabolism ,SPS Centre for Research in Health and Social Care ,Global Health ,Childhood obesity ,Young Adult ,social medicine ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Social medicine ,Environmental health ,Per capita ,Humans ,Medicine ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Child ,Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development ,Socioeconomic status ,media_common ,international health services ,business.industry ,Ecological study ,health policy ,General Medicine ,medicine.disease ,Obesity ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Child, Preschool ,Female ,Health Expenditures ,business ,Welfare ,community child health - Abstract
ObjectivesThe burden of childhood obesity is clustered among children in low-socioeconomic groups. Social spending on children—public welfare expenditure on families and education—may curb childhood obesity by reducing socioeconomic disadvantages. The objective of this study was to examine the relationship between social spending on children and childhood obesity across the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.DesignEcological study.SettingData on social spending on children were obtained from the OECD Social Expenditure Database and the OECD educational finance indicators dataset during 2000–2015. Data on childhood obesity were obtained from the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration database.ParticipantsAggregated statistics on obesity among children aged 5–19 years, estimated for OECD 35 countries based on the measured height and weight on 31.5 million children.Outcome measuresCountry-level prevalence of obesity among children aged 5–19 years.ResultsIn cross-sectional analyses in 2015, social spending on children was inversely associated with the prevalence of childhood obesity after adjusting for potential confounders (the gross domestic product per capita, unemployment rate, poverty rate, percentage of children aged ConclusionCountries that increase social spending on children tend to experience smaller increases in childhood obesity.
- Published
- 2021