Editorial: Latest research on New Zealand kids highlights a national shame

Almost nine out of 10 children in New Zealand have had a significant source of trauma in their lives by the time they are 8, with impacts on their mental and physical health, a new study has found. Photo / 123rf

Editorial

Nearly nine in 10 Kiwi kids endure some kind of trauma before turning 8 – be it bullying, parental drug or alcohol addiction, violence or family break-ups.

That’s according to a major new study that draws a link between childhood trauma and developing obesity later in life.

This was no small research. Using data from nearly 5000 children tracked by the Growing Up in New Zealand study, the researchers looked at what they consider “adverse childhood experiences”.

That included being bullied or abused; having parents split up, imprisoned, or addicted to drugs or alcohol; or living in homes with family violence or mental illness.

Earlier studies suggested that about half of Kiwi adults had such episodes in childhood.

But the latest findings, out today, put that prevalence much higher, at 87%, with disproportionate rates among Māori and Pasifika children and those living in deprivation.

These numbers should be cause for pause and reflection. What kind of social environment is New Zealand providing to its tamariki, where such an overwhelming majority of them experience trauma? As a society, we must ask ourselves where it has all gone so wrong and, more importantly, what can we do to change this shameful statistic.

Beyond the fact that no child should go through trauma – let alone nine out of 10 Kiwi children going through it – there are also the long-term effects of such negative experiences.

According to the research, children who had at least one of those traumatic experiences were twice as likely to be obese by the age of 8 as those who hadn’t – and that risk worsened as the numbers of setbacks mounted.

Children who had four or more of them, for instance, were nearly three times more likely to develop obesity, which in turn could lead to serious mental and physical health issues.

Trauma is potentially worsening health outcomes for 87% of children in this country. The cascade of effects does not stop there and has consequences for our healthcare system and our wider social structure.

While the issue is hugely serious, addressing it is not complicated, but it does require buy-in from everyone involved in these children’s lives, from parents and caregivers all the way up to government institutions and anyone who has an impact in the lives of these children and their families. We must strive to both prevent the number of negative experiences children go through but also offset these by ensuring they grow up in positive, nourishing environments.

According to the research, the negative experiences can be countered by positive factors, such as parents being in committed relationships, mothers interacting with their children and being involved in social groups – and children having good early educations and living in homes with routines and rules. But children needed at least four of those insulating factors to offset the risk of obesity, the researchers found.

Study leader Dr Ladan Hashemi, of the University of Auckland and City St George’s University of London. Photo / University of Auckland

“This isn’t just about preventing obesity; it’s about helping children thrive,” the study’s lead author, Dr Ladan Hashemi, of the University of Auckland and City St George’s University of London, said.

Measures like household routines, better access to early childhood education and reducing poverty could all make a difference, she said.

The measure of a good, decent society is how well it looks after its most vulnerable. Our tamariki deserve better – we all, collectively, must do better.