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Irish Independent
a day ago
- Health
- Irish Independent
Irish children's general health is better than their tooth care, CSO figures show
While the general health of more than nine in 10 – 92.4pc – of children aged between two to 17 years was considered to be good or very good, the same description could only apply to 82.3pc when it came to their teeth. Some 3.2pc were considered to have 'bad or very bad' general dental health, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The figures show that 93.4pc of children aged two to eight years of age were considered to have good or very good general health, compared with 94.6pc of children aged nine to 12 years and 89.6pcpc of children aged 13 to 17 years. The percentage of children aged two to 17 years who were considered to be in good or very good health was highest in HSE south west at 95.2pc and lowest in HSE Dublin and Midlands at 90.8pc. Almost one in five – 18.4pc – of children aged two to 17 years have a long-standing illness or health problem and it is higher for males – 19.9pc – than females at 16.8pc. Over one in 20 children aged two to 17 years were admitted to a hospital as an in-patient and 14.7pc were a day-case patient in the past 12 months. Almost half of children aged two to 17 years needed a medical examination or treatment – excluding dental – for a health problem in the past 12 months. Fruits and vegetables were eaten at least once a day by 89.0pc of children aged two to 17 years – although consumption fell off slightly among older children. Some 95.9pc had a meal with meat, chicken, or fish – or vegetarian equivalent – at least once a day. Participation in leisure activities such as swimming, playing an instrument, or youth organisations was highest for those aged nine to 12 years at 92.3pc and lowest for those aged two to eight years at 80.8pc. ADVERTISEMENT Sarah Crilly, Statistician in the Health and Social Cohesion Division, said: 'The statistics contained in this release are selected from a module on children's health that was included in the Irish Health Survey, which was conducted in 2024. "The guardians of children aged between two to 17 years were asked questions, via an online questionnaire, about their child's health status, access to health care, and their health determinants such as nutrition and recreational activities. 'The release includes a selection of statistics from the children's module survey with additional data available on the CSO's open data portal, PxStat. The complete list of statistics are included in the Data chapter of this release, with further statistics disaggregated by age, sex and HSE health region. This is the first CSO survey publication to include statistics by HSE health region.'
Irish Examiner
11-07-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Younger people drinking less but smoking more cannabis than older generations
Young adults are drinking alcohol far less regularly than older generations, but are vaping and smoking cannabis in much greater numbers, a new survey has found. The Central Statistics Office's Irish Health Survey for 2024 found that 56% of people aged 55-64 said they drink alcohol at least weekly compared to just 27% of 18-24 year olds. On the other hand, almost a quarter (23.6%) of people aged 18-34 said they vaped daily or occasionally, compared to fewer than 10% of those aged 45 and over. And, while over one in five (22.1%) of 18-24 year olds said they'd smoked cannabis in the last year, only 5.5% of 45-54 year olds said they had. The statistics come amid recent commentary on young Irish people drinking less than their older counterparts. Speaking last week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin noted there is a growing use of cocaine across the country, while alcohol consumption has declined in recent years. While this survey does not contain data on cocaine use, it does show a disparity in alcohol consumption across age groups in Ireland. Health findings Elsewhere, the survey found that over three-quarters of people aged 18 years and over considered their health to be good or very good last year. And, while 70% of people considered their mental health to be good or very good, this fell to just over half (50.8%) for people aged 18-24. Of this age group, over one in six people (17.5%) said their mental health was bad or very bad. The survey also found that 18.7% of adults have been diagnosed with a specific neurodiverse condition or suspected they were neurodiverse. CSO statistician Sarah Crilly explained: 'Someone may consider themselves to be, or be diagnosed as, neurodiverse if they are autistic; have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD); have dyspraxia (difficulty in physical coordination) or other neurodivergent condition; have differences in social preferences; have differences in ways of learning; communicate or perceive the world around themselves differently; or are particularly sensitive to noise or lighting.' Ms Crilly also said that women were more likely to have gone to a GP in the last 12 months than men. While almost 85% of women had had a GP consultation in the last year, only 74% of men had. 'Females (59.2%) aged 18 years and over were more likely than males (48.3%) to have used prescription medicine in the two weeks prior to completion of the survey,' she said. 'This excludes contraceptive pills or hormones used solely for contraception. 'Those aged 75 years and over (92.0%) were almost three times more likely to have used prescription medicines in the two weeks prior to completion of the survey in comparison with those aged 18 to 24 years of age (30.7%).' Meanwhile, 18% of people said they provide care or are carers for somebody. As well as smoking and drinking, the survey also looked at some other health factors such as a person's body mass index. It found that almost a quarter (23.8%) of people aged 18 years and over in Ireland were classified as obese. Older people were more likely to be obese, with three in 10 (30.1%) of 55-64 year olds classified as such, compared to 13.6% of 18-24 year olds.
