readth of these health issues has been largely neglected.
“The broader approach to prevention really needs to lie beyond just the health sector to include those sectors where young people are spending their lives, like education, welfare, protecting families to do a better job parenting and road safety,” she says.
“In Australia, road traffic one of the largest causes of death for young people.
“Bringing together a complex set of disciplines that don’t readily speak to each other is the opportunity that is provided to us in this work of the commission.
“This generation of young adults can transform all of our futures. There is no more pressing task than ensuring they have the opportunity to do so.”
ambitious goals, real action
The Lancet Commission brings together 30 of the world’s leading experts from 14 countries as well as two young health advocates.
It is a truly international effort, driven by a partnership between the University of Melbourne, University College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health in the USA.
Professor Patton says adolescence is a critical time of formative growth and brain development second only to infancy.
“Puberty triggers a cascading process of brain development and emotional change that continues through to the mid-20s,” he says.
It’s during those formative years that the unhealthy patterns are formed and often remain for life.
Smoking, drinking, poor diet and unsafe sex, to name a few.
“But because adolescence is generally thought to be the healthiest time of life, young people have attracted little interest and too few resources,” Professor Patton says.
“Indeed, adolescents aged 10 to 24 years have the poorest health care coverage of any age group.”
Education: the magic bullet
Above all else, the Commission sees an urgent need to expand access to free secondary education and to continue gathering better evidence.
“The single best investment we can make is guaranteeing access to free, quality secondary education,” explains Professor Patton.
“Every year of education beyond the age of 12 is associated with fewer births for adolescent girls and fewer adolescent deaths for boys and girls. A healthy, educated workforce has the potential to shape a country’s economic prospects.”
He adds that it is crucial young people are involved in transforming their wellbeing, personal development and health.
“Digital media and new technologies offer remarkable opportunities to engage and empower young people to drive change.
“There is a pressing need to ensure that all young people have opportunities and access to universal health coverage regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, and marital, and socioeconomic status, particularly the marginalised.”
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon agrees. He calls young people ‘the world’s greatest untapped resource’.
“Adolescents can be key driving forces in building a future of dignity for all,” he says.
“If we can make a positive difference in the lives of 10-year-old girls and boys today, and expand their opportunities and capabilities over the next 15 years, we can ensure the success of the Sustainable Development Goals.”
Banner Image: Shutterstock