Poverty triples likelihood of mental health problems
26 August 2008
 Children from disadvantaged families are three times more likely to suffer from mental health problems than those from wealthier families, according to new research. The End Child Poverty report, published by a large network of charities, highlighted an epidemic of poverty which is costing children their lives, reports the Guardian.As well as being at a heightened risk of developing mental health problems, poor children are ten times more likely to suffer from sudden infant death syndrome and twice as likely to develop asthma.Donald Hirsch, co-author of the report and policy adviser to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, told the paper: "From the day they are born, children's health and very survival are threatened by family poverty.""It is one of society's greatest inequalities that poor health is so dramatically linked to poverty," he added.The Liberal Democrat's shadow chancellor, Vince Cable, accused the government of failing to deliver its anti-poverty strategy claiming one in seven adults in the UK are trapped in poverty.  © Adfero Ltd
© 2008 Adfero Ltd. All rights reserved. Any views and opinions expressed in news articles are not those of Craegmoor Limited and its associated companies. News supplied by Adfero DirectNews.
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