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Specifically, this study used validated questionnaires to determine the extent to which children from Asturias, Gipuzkoa, Sabadell and Valencia in Spain, internalize or externalize their perceived psychological problems, and also looked at four distinct symptom groups: emotional problems, conduct problems, hyperactivity and inattention, and peer problems. The authors used two quantitative measures of proximity to natural environment features, namely, the normalised difference in vegetation index (NDVI) and whether or not the person has green space (such as a park) within 5km of their home. The SES for the specific areas in which people live was calculated using a validated index that is based on unemployment, the proportion of manual workers, people in temporary work, low-levels of educational attainment, and low-levels of educational attainment in young people.

The study found no clear difference in the relationship between mental health conditions and natural environment features between levels of SES, although children whose mothers graduated from secondary school consistently had lower internalizing and externalizing scores than children whose mothers had a highest educational level of primary school.

This new study did not identify an association between green and blue space and internalizing and externalizing problems. This finding is consistent with a recent systematic review on the subject. The authors of the new study hypothesised that this may be due differences in the association between subgroups of the population, hence the investigation by different levels of SES. Analysing subgroups according to SES, however, did not show a statistically significant association between green and blue space and internalizing and externalizing problems.

While the study didn’t find associations between SES and the relationship between mental health and access to the natural environment, it found some evidence to suggest that proximity to natural environment features alone was influenced by SES. These were not always in the expected direction though, for example while children in the lowest SES band had lower levels of vegetation than those in the highest SES band according to the NDVI score, they actually had higher levels of access to major green space. Other studies have reported that there may be a difference in the quality of these green spaces, but this was outside the scope of the current study.

The authors concluded that while this study did not identify statistically significant associations between mental health and the natural environment by levels of SES, there are grounds for further investigation. They suggested that future investigations may benefit from measuring the amount of time individuals spend in natural areas, rather than just their access to them, and also the quality of the natural spaces. All in all this study contributed to the existing literature by providing additional evidence of the factors that may or may not influence mental health in children

Reference: Subiza-Pérez M, García-Baquero G, Fernández-Somoano A, Riaño I, González L, Delgado-Saborit JM, Guxens M, Fossati S, Vrijheid M, Fernandes A, Ibarluzea J, Lertxundi N. Social inequalities, green and blue spaces and mental health in 6-12 years old children participating in the INMA cohort. Health Place. 2023 Sep;83:103104.

Link to scientific article: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0283799

Days: 11 and 12 of June, 2024
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During childhood, obesity has experienced a notable rise, with scientific evidence indicating that early obesity can persist into adulthood. Despite these observations, previous studies on the tendency of cardiometabolic factors to cluster in childhood have yielded diverse results.

The new study, conducted in the INMA cohort in Asturias, aimed to explore the simultaneous presence of multiple cardiometabolic risk factors, including obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia, at ages 4 and 8. A total of 332 children were examined through clinical assessments to evaluate their metabolic health, measuring waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, blood glucose levels, and levels of triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) in the blood.

The results reveal that, at both 4 and 8 years old, the most common patterns are the absence of risk factors and the isolated presence of central obesity. At 8 years old, the isolated presence of hypertension is also observed. Although these are the most prevalent patterns, it was noted that central obesity tends to appear simultaneously with other risk factors at both ages, highlighting its relevance in the development of additional cardiometabolic conditions.

A significant finding is that almost all children without risk factors at 4 years old continued to be free of them at 8 years old, suggesting that maintaining good cardiometabolic health in childhood can have a protective effect over time. This study underscores the importance of addressing metabolic health from early ages to prevent cardiovascular risks in the future.

Reference: Fernández-Iglesias R, Fernández-Somoano A, Rodríguez-Dehli C, Venta-Obaya R, Riaño-Galán I, Tardón A. Cardiovascular risk factors and its patterns of change between 4 and 8 years of age in the INMA-Asturias cohort. PLoS One. 2023 Apr 12;18(4):e0283799.

Link to scientific article: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0283799