Wanted by Pope Francis, World Children's Day is celebrated around the world, which sees around 70,000 little protagonists from over 100 nations gathered in Rome . «We want to look at the world through the eyes of children, who are the hope of the people, their future. The simplicity of their hearts is a gift from God and, for those who know how to welcome it, the possibility of peace" the words of Father Enzo Fortunato, who coordinates the event.

But how have today's children changed compared to even those of just a few years ago? Pediatrician Anna Maria Bottelli talks about it.

«Undoubtedly technology, I think I can answer, was one of the causes of this revolution». «To keep an infant calm, a little one in the first year of life, now - the parents I meet every day during my visits often say - a mobile phone with a program he likes is enough , just as to make him complete his food, it is no longer used distraction mediated by cartoons, but the smartphone." And the consequences are not to be underestimated . «They are now multimedia children – explains Bottelli – very stimulated on an intellectual level , but not always contained and supported on an emotional level . It is the society of everything and immediately which, by conditioning the adult, cannot reflexively exclude the little ones." Families then changed , «with a clear multiplication of family models: from separated parents or extended families, to single-parent families or those made up of parents of different ethnic groups or more. They are subjected to strong pressure due to various inadequacies: from housing or work problems, to the stress of excessive consumption, with the early intrusion of technological tools".

What follows, explains the expert, is unfortunately very often "a 'difference' of roles within families with parents who are too close to their children, tyrant children, fragile parents . This highlights the difficulties encountered by parents in exercising role competence. And when the child gets sick – he must be healed by yesterday! – Doctor Google is within reach of a smartphone and at times very confusing: Google does not always contain parental anxieties which are then reflected on the children."

«Mine are observations of change, which are not intended to be denigrating – specifies Bottelli – but rather to propose new methods of help and support for the purpose of psychophysical and social growth of children, adequate to the evolution of the times . Decades ago, for the well-being of children, the aim was to reduce infant mortality through vaccinations or environmental hygiene measures: simply think of water made drinkable or the sterilization of baby bottles, how many gastroenteritis they avoided. Now new strategies are needed with nutritional education plans, lifestyles based on regular physical and motor activity - unfortunately in the affluent society the childhood obesity rate is increasing -, fight against environmental pollution, food safety and sustainability, pre-symptomatic identification of subjects at genetic risk".

« The SIP (Italian Society of Paediatrics) – explains Bottelli – has summarized prevention for children in six “Ws” .

Here they are below:

  • What: we must not only prevent children's diseases, but also early-onset adult diseases;
  • Who: on a hypothetical scene each actor has a part to play: parents, teachers, paediatricians, media and institutions;
  • Where: attention to the places where children live, and therefore family, territory, school, places dedicated to food or various activities;
  • When: pay increasingly early attention, from before conception, to safe lifestyles, which eliminate substances capable of negatively influencing the development of the embryo and fetus, modifying gene expression;
  • Why: only with knowledge can policies be implemented to eliminate the causes or limit the clinical impact; there is no top-down prevention, but it must be the result of multidisciplinary and multi-professional project sharing;
  • Web: new technologies cannot be overlooked with their communicative innovation; It is important to build health also with the internet, monitoring the quality of the messages to be transmitted, always protecting the little ones.

(Unioneonline/vl)

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