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E. SPECIFIC HEALTH PROBLEMS EXPERIENCED BY EARLY HEAD START CHILDREN
The low socioeconomic status of Early Head Start families places them at greater risk for health problems that can have important consequences for children if they are not detected and treated early. Some health conditions can place children at risk for later developmental disabilities. For example, chronic ear infections can impair children’s hearing and hinder language development, and lead poisoning or seizures can affect children’s neurological development with impacts on cognitive or motor skills. For this reason, Early Head Start programs are required to conduct or arrange for screening tests for all children to identify potential health problems and developmental delays.
To learn about children’s specific health problems, we asked primary caregivers, “Has the doctor ever told you (NAME OF CHILD) has the following? Does he/she have ...?” with regard to 14 specific problems. The primary caregivers were also asked to report any other health problems not listed.
Among the physical health problems experienced by Early Head Start children, ear infections were by far the most frequent problem reported by primary caregivers. By the time of the third follow-up interview, which was conducted an average of 28 months after enrollment in Early Head Start, half of the children (51 percent) were reported to have been diagnosed as having recurrent ear infections (Table 3). Parents were asked if a doctor ever told them their child had recurrent ear infections. Parents’ understanding of this question probably varied, so their responses may have included children with as few as two ear infections in one year (not uncommon in early childhood) as well as children who experienced multiple infections.
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Children Ever Diagnosed With Health Problems, as Reported by Primary | |
| Caregivers | |
|
51.4 |
|
28.3 |
|
11.5 |
|
2.8 |
|
3.1 |
|
7.2 |
|
6.0 |
|
3.6 |
|
2.3 |
|
2.1 |
|
1.8 |
|
1.1 |
| Children Exposed to Household Smoking | 57.2 |
| Sample Sizea | 697-1,032 |
| Source: Parent services follow-up interviews completed 7, 16, and 28 months after enrollment for families who completed the 28-month follow-up interview. | |
| a Range reflects minimum and maximum sample sizes for items in table. | |
Many Early Head Start children experienced asthma and respiratory problems. According to their parents, more than one-fourth of the children (28 percent) had been diagnosed with asthma or respiratory problems by the time of the third follow-up interview, when children were 32 months old, on average. In 1998, national data showed that parents of 8 percent of children under age 5 had ever been told that their child had asthma. Among children of all ages, those in families with annual incomes below $20,000 had rates of asthma that were about 30 percent higher than children overall, which suggests that nearly 11 percent of children under age 5 in poor families may have had asthma (DHHS 2002).
Children in center-based programs were more likely to have asthma/respiratory problems (35 percent) than children in mixed (29 percent), or home-based programs (23 percent). This could be related to children’s increased exposure to infectious diseases, including respiratory infections, in group care settings.
Few Early Head Start parents reported that their children were diagnosed with other serious health problems during the 28 months, on average, after they enrolled in the program. Less than 5 percent of the children experienced more serious problems such as seizures (2 percent) or heart problems (4 percent). Only two children were reported to have been diagnosed with diabetes.
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