Growing health inequalities, which mean children in the poorest areas are more likely to suffer from obesity and are at greater risk of infant mortality, are a “national problem for Scotland,” researchers have said.
Dr Anna Pearce, an expert at the University of Glasgow, said the “widening of inequality” in some areas of children’s health was “worrying,” particularly as the financial situation for many families is expected to worsen.
Her comments came as a study carried out by the MRC/CSO Social and Public Health Sciences Unit at the University of Glasgow revealed “stark and concerning data” – including that children living in deprived areas are 2.6 times as likely to die before their first birthday as children in less deprived areas.
