Civilization diseases in childhood – state-of-the- art literature review

Abstract

Introduction and Objective. Civilization diseases are widespread in the adult population. However, their occurrence has been increasing recently in children. The aim of this review is to introduce the most common diseases and present their diagnosis and treatment methods. Review Methods. The review is based on scientific publications in PubMed, Google Scholar, Wiley Library, Web of Science, and NCBI databases. Over 95% of the articles are less than eight years old. The languages of articles were mainly English (97.5 %) and Polish (2.5%). After initial evaluation of the articles, meta-analyses and reviews considering civilization diseases in childhood were selected. Publications were analyzed using the non-systematic review method with the intention of producing a short synthesis of the available information. Mainly developed countries were covered by the analysis. Brief description of the state of knowledge. The review shows an increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes, obesity, dental caries, and hypertension in the paediatric population. This is associated with lifestyle changes, improper nutrition, and decreased physical activity in children. There is also a higher incidence of mental illnesses in the child population. The main factors contributing to this increase are unhealthy lifestyle, lack of sleep hygiene and education, and lack of mental health education. Conclusions. Civilization diseases are no longer the leading cause of adult morbidity but are increasingly occurring in children. Prevention of civilization diseases is much more beneficial for children. Early detection of the civilization disease is crucial for the subsequent well-being of the child. Rapid treatment and education of the patients and their families are essential to avoid complications. Paediatricians should be aware of their occurrence and aim to actively prevent them.