China

In Bignona, Senegal, a young mother Aïcha sits on bed with a furled mosquito net, in a bright pink health centre room. Together with a nurse in a white coat, she lays Nima on a measuring board. Although it’s not painful, the girl cries and grabs her mum’s hand as the nurse holds her legs straight to measure her height. Later, the nurse also checks…

Child health and nutrition are key goals under the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. Currently, around 45% of deaths among children under five years of age are linked to undernutrition. These mostly occur in low- and middle-income countries. In June 2023, the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation (CAITEC) and the…

This article was first published on the UNICEF Senegal website in 2021. COVID-19 has created an increased risk of malnutrition among children in Senegal due to its wide-reaching socio-economic impact. The pandemic affected all aspects of Senegal’s health system and early in the crisis access to nutrition services was often impaired, threatening…

  This article was first published on the UNICEF DRC website. In the second half of 2021, 2-year-old Gadi's health began to deteriorate. The normally happy little boy from the Democratic Republic of the Congo had lost his appetite and was visibly losing weight. “I was getting more and more worried about Gadi's health,” recalls Gadi's mother,…

This article was first published on the UNICEF DRC website. UVIRA TERRITORY, SOUTH KIVU PROVINCE, DR Congo – Full of joy and relief, Marita looks at her little girl who, was once extremely weak. "She could no longer stand or play," the mother recalls. It was thanks to therapeutic food received at a UNICEF-supported health centre that the little…

Child overweight and obesity rates have grown rapidly in China over the past decades. Over 15 million in China are obese [1] . The prevalence of overweight and obesity among children aged 6 to 17, which reached 19 per cent in 2020 [2] , continues to increase year by year. Without action, the threat of childhood obesity could have severe short-term…, #KnowYourFood Convenience Store, Mock convenience store highlights food environments around children Convenience stores near schools or in communities expose children to ultra-processed foods high in fat, sugar, salt and energy. To help children and young people understand the potential health hazards of ultra-processed snacks, the campaign unveiled a pop-up convenience store…, #KnowYourFood Laboratory, Some of your favourite snacks are known for containing high amounts of sugar, fat or salt, but how high can it be? The result might surprise you. We invited Dr. David Evans, a chemistry professor from the Beijing University of Chemical Technology and popular video blogger, to explore the truth about the ingredients through fun experiments. 'We…, Tips for children and young people, Follow these six recommendations to maintain a healthy diet. Yes, you can! Eat five types of vegetables “知食”就是力量海报-蔬菜 Eat recommended snacks “知食”就是力量海报-零食 Eat less ultra-processed food “知食”就是力量海报-加工食品 Say No to sugar-sweetened beverages “知食”就是力量海报-含糖饮料 Let's move together “知食”就是力量海报-运动 Get enough sleep “知食”就是力量海报-充足睡眠  The One-week Challenge Are…, Teaching nutrition, In collaboration with nutrition experts, UNICEF has developed nutrition education materials for school children. These sessions can fit into the syllabus of primary and secondary schools. UNICEF will also help schools create a healthier food environment. Facilitator guide 营养课宣讲介绍手册 Slides “知食”营养课课件 One month without sugar-sweetened beverages We…, Tips for parents, Keep these tips in mind next time you cook for or dine out with your child 知食就是力量课件-家长版 Slides for parents A girl eats a healthy lunch How to support your child if you are concerned about their weight Joaquín, 2, helps his mother, Rosina, pick apples in the family's orchard at their home in a rural area of the department of San José, Uruguay. How…, Enable healthy choices, Unhealthy food environments are undermining children’s rights to adequate nutrition and contributing to rapid increases in overweight and obesity. We need urgent action to improve them. Three factors increasing child obesity rates Child obesity rates are soaring. Here are three drivers of this alarming trend. Reshaping urban retail food…, Reports and research, Weibo QRcode WeChat QRcode

Children suffering from wasting are up to eleven times more likely to die than well-nourished children. This makes wasting one of the most significant contributors to child mortality. Today, on International Poverty Reduction Day  we are highlighting a major humanitarian challenge: child nutrition. Good nutrition is a right for every child and the…

This summer, UNICEF and NYT Kids China invited adolescents from China, Romania and India to participate in a Pen Pal Initiative.  These kids, between 14 to 18 years old, share diverse cultural perspectives but also a common passion for mental health. Over the course of three weeks, they exchanged their inspiring ideas., 01 On Promoting Mental Health, Shirley Parents and schools could help in popularizing the importance of mental health and steps we can take to improve it. I think parents should take the responsibility to take care of their children’s mental health. I also believe that school, as an influential part of teenagers’ daily lives, could lead efforts to popularize mental health…, 02 On Peer Support, James When I or my friends face problems or difficulties, we would get together for a meal and talk it out. It is quite effective. I believe schools should guide students to correctly evaluate themselves and accept themselves. To achieve this, they can carry out psychological counseling activities. JAMES, China Shirley As teenagers, we can write…, 03 On Talking About Mental Health, Brianna Start conversations. Sometimes we are reluctant to talk about mental health because we are afraid what we might say isn’t what others want to hear. However, once the first step is taken, we will feel the support from people around us, and this will have a rippling effect. BRIANNA, China Paavani Widening our vocabulary to truly understand…

What would you do to boost your mental health if you felt anxious, worried or depressed? For many people, music is often high on the list, because the right melody and lyrics can soothe and heal a worrying mind. A group of young people have taken it to another level. Supported by UNICEF, they rewrote the lyrics of the 80s hit song Brother Louie by…

BEIJING, 12 October 2021 – At an event held today, UNICEF called for societies to listen to young people, who are increasingly raising their voices for mental health, and to commit to supporting their psychological well-being. The event was co-hosted by the National Center for Mental Health and UNICEF China, with advice from the Bureau of Disease…