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Topics: Family issues

The results show that the prevalence of overweight or obesity has now fallen to the same levels as before the COVID-19 pandemic, i.e. 11.4%. During the pandemic, the prevalence was 13.3 per cent.

Childhood overweight is associated with socio-economic vulnerability

More children have overweight in regions with high rates of single parenthood, low education levels, low income and high child poverty. The pandemic may also have reinforced this trend. This is shown by a study conducted by researchers at Uppsala University and Region Sörmland in collaboration with Region Skåne.

From the book "Blå ugglan" by Lotta Geffenblad (2023) with permission. Image: Lotta Geffenblad

Death and grief in Swedish children’s books

Death is blue, or a flying animal. This is how death is most commonly illustrated in Swedish children’s literature, according to a new study from Uppsala University based on analyses of 62 books. Just six out of ten books use the word ‘dead’, which may be a problem.

New study links contraceptive pills and depression

Women who used combined contraceptive pills were at greater risk of developing depression than women who did not, according to a new study. The pills increased women’s risk by 73 per cent during the first two years of use. “Since we only investigated combined contraceptive pills in this study, we cannot draw conclusions about other contraceptive options", says leading researcher Uppsala University

Early tastings shorten breastfeeding

The earlier infants begin to taste small samples of solid food, the earlier they eat more food and stop breastfeeding. This is shown in a new study from Uppsala University and Sophiahemmet University, in which the mothers of 1,251 infants from all over Sweden participated. Almost half of the infants received tastings at the age of four months.

The vulnerability of surrogate mothers in a global market

A new dissertation on surrogacy highlights Thai women's experiences of having acted as surrogate mothers. The dissertation shows the women's vulnerability in a global surrogacy industry, but also provides a more nuanced picture of what makes women seek surrogacy and how they relate to the process.

Small measures can be a big help for children of mothers with depression

Small measures can be a big help for children of mothers with depression

Several new studies among Syrian refugee families in Turkey and families with infants in Sweden and Bhutan show that children of mothers in poor mental health risk falling behind in their cognitive development. However, very small changes can suffice to break this correlation and enable the children to return to their normal developmental level. The solutions where the same in all three countries

Fifty–fifty split best for children of divorce

Preschool children in joint physical custody have less psychological symptoms than those who live mostly or only with one parent after a separation. That shows a new Swedish study of 3,656 children, done by researchers from Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet and the research institute CHESS, which is now published in Acta Pædiatrica.

Uppsala Health Summit 11-12 October: Pre-conference report

A report has been released for the upcoming Uppsala Health Summit on ending childhood obesity, outlining the challenges, including the effectiveness of the much debated sugar-tax, how to target interventions for immigrants and the role of industry. The report is produced to prepare the 200 delegates for discussions on concrete solutions.

Uppsala University - quality, knowledge, and creativity since 1477

Founded in 1477, Uppsala University is the oldest university in Sweden. With more than 50,000 students and 7,500 employees in Uppsala and Visby, we are a broad university with research in social sciences, humanities, technology, natural sciences, medicine and pharmacology. Our mission is to conduct education and research of the highest quality and relevance to society on a long-term basis. Uppsala University is regularly ranked among the world’s top universities.

Uppsala University

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Sweden

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