Scrap the two child cap or accept a sicker generation: Britain’s health crisis starts in childhood

One that they look set to rely on heavily will be a loosening of the two-child benefit cap. The consequences will not just be transformative for the 4.5 million children who live in poverty in the UK but could help address deep health inequalities, such as growing levels of obesity.

The numbers are sobering, with recent figures showing that one-third of 10- and 11-year-old children in England are classified as being overweight or obese.

The King's Fund analysis of these statistics show that this equates to almost a quarter-of-a-million primary school leavers. It is enough to fill Wimbledon Centre Court more than 15-times over.

Health problems in children, such as obesity, can become more established in adulthood and leave people struggling with their health for longer or managing multiple long-term conditions. It also puts sustained pressure on health service budgets, at a time when they are already stretched.

Research from The King’s Fund highlights that there is a strong relationship between deprivation and poor diet. Children living in the most deprived areas are nearly twice as likely to be overweight or obese compared to those living in the most affluent areas.

Healthier foods cost more than twice as much as less healthy options and more than one in four children are growing up in food insecure households, creating challenges for families trying to feed their households. And the negative health impacts of child poverty go beyond obesity.

Cases of infant mortality, the chance of having to attend A&E or being hospitalised with asthma are all significantly higher for children from poorer communities.

In all, it is harder for people in poverty to live healthy lives and access NHS services and they are likely to live with greater illness and die earlier than the rest of the population.

Lifting the two-child benefit cap would pull 540,000 children out of absolute poverty according to research by the IFS last year. If the government were to take this step it could go some way to narrowing health disparities and build towards their ambition of creating 'the healthiest generation of children ever', but it cannot stop there.

It will take a comprehensive approach to tackle the root causes of poor health and well-being. We need to see a model that shares responsibility between individuals, families, the state, and private companies, to make healthy choices the easy choices.

Policy gaps like these have left the UK in a position where it now ranks amongst the highest in OECD countries for adult obesity rates and today’s generation of children in the UK experience some of the worst health outcomes in Europe.

As well as taking steps to tackle child poverty and implementing plans to restrict junk food ads and energy drinks, further action on food – for example encouraging the reduction of salt, sugar and fat in highly processed foods – and steps to encourage more play and physical activity would be welcome. Play, including active play and time spent outdoors in a safe and natural environment, is essential to a child’s physical, mental and social wellbeing and what many of us would probably describe when thinking about a happy childhood. Levels of physical activity are falling, with fewer than half (48%) of children meeting recommended activity levels, whilst sedentary behaviours such as screen time are up. Concerted action across Whitehall and at local level is needed to support physical activity too.

The stakes are clear – an NHS buckling under pressure and a generation of children at risk of lifelong poor health. The government cannot deal in half measures to address it.

________________

Sarah Woolnough is the CEO of the King's Fund

LBC Opinion provides a platform for diverse opinions on current affairs and matters of public interest.

The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official LBC position.

To contact us email opinion@lbc.co.uk