Youth and Health

• youth can be analyzed in 3 ways?

  age category, transitional stage between childhood dependency and adult independence and a social construct
• Youth


  • An age category
  • A transitional stage between childhood and adulthood
  • A social construct
• United Nations definition of Youth

  An individual female or male aged between 15 and 24 years
• Definition of youth (age category) varies across countries as well as international organizations that advocate for youth development
• In Malaysia, youth are 15-40 years
• Variation in youth definition

  Social, economic, political, and cultural circumstances
• Transitional phase of youth

  The period in which one transitions from childhood dependency to adulthood independence
• Transitional markers of youth

  • Leaving home
  • Finding employment
  • Setting up home
  • Marriage
• The meanings and order of occurrence of transitional markers differ from region to region and significantly for men and women
• In some cultures all transitional markers apply to both men and women but other traditional markers apply to men only
• According to ILO in 2002, 211 million children aged 5-14 worldwide could be found at work in developing countries
• Youth as a social construct


  A stage in the development of young people that poses a certain way in which they are viewed by the society, and is influenced by specific race, gender, class or cultural context
• Common characteristics of youth

  • Youths hold the largest age group of the population of developing countries
  • Pose greater need for acceptance, co-operation, consultation than other age group
  • They are skillful, energetic, industrious, and willing to learn to be socially valuable
  • They are greatly confronted with problems such as unemployment, delinquency, and unwanted pregnancy
  • Have great potential to initiate action and can be empowered in decision making
• The transition or change from childhood to adulthood is a dependent stage, and families, society and the state play a vital role to provide them with the support and opportunities that are essential for their growth
• Erik Erikson's development theory of Psychosocial Development


  Youth Development (YD) is a strategic approach with a focus on practices for engaging entire communities in helping all youth thrive
• Youth Development progresses through

  • Education
  • Health and well-being
  • Employment opportunity
  • Civic participation
  • Political participation
• The terms 'Youth Development'

  Can be used in three different ways: natural process, principles, practices
• Youth development is important because they are agents of change, aim for positive change, are nation builders of tomorrow, and contribute to the long-term development of a country
• Supporting the notion of youth development empowers youth in this process attempting to meet their basic personal and social needs, build skills and competencies, and provide and promote the individual, family and community based on democratic values
• The National Youth Policy of Papua New Guinea 2007-2017 defines youth as an individual between 12 and 20 years of age, however also welcomes individuals over 25 to participate in youth programming
• Culturally, the age of youth in PNG is defined by roles, health and involvement in the community
• 50% of the population in PNG is under 20 years of age
• Youth is seen as a transition state, where cultural values and practices are being challenged by the process of urbanization and increasing influences of western culture
• Adverse experiences shared by youths in PNG

  • Unemployment
  • Health
  • Violence and injury
  • Delinquency
• The term youth can be analyzed in three different ways.

  a)         An age category

  b)       A transitional stage between childhood and adulthood

  c)         A social construct
• Health


  A state of complete wellbeing, physical, social, mental and spiritual, not just mere absence of disease
• Disease and illness are two distinct concepts. You can have a disease without being ill
• Health


  A socially constructed concept - different social groups have different ideas of being ill
• Health


  An economic resource - if a society invests in the physical and mental health of its people, it is likely to have a financial payoff
• Socio-cultural conditions that influence youth health

  • Family unit
  • Education
  • Employment status
  • Community organization
• Family unit


  • Fundamental social unit, major source of basic necessities of life and health: love and tenderness, shelter, food and clean water, clothing, and security
  • Provide great material for moral support and role modeling for the young as they enter into adulthood
  • Nuclear family provides less parental control but at its best provide moral, educational and vocational guidance
• Education


  • Formal education is of great importance to the development of all young people, it is in school that numeracy, literacy, and thinking skills are fostered and exercised, knowledge is acquired, schools and teachers restore stability of youngsters who have been from families that are unstable
• Employment status


  • Single most important condition of maintaining a healthy development of young people after they leave school, young people contribute to the economic development of their countries, they are frequently subjected to disproportionate burden of unemployment, leading to psychological stress
• Community organization


  • The healthy development of young people requires that they should have the opportunity to give expression to their newfound physical, mental, social, and moral energies, youth and community associations offer this opportunity and help the young explore new territory and give thought to others, provide guidance to minimize the risks involved in new experiences, and put their energies to constructive use, form an important link between family, school, and health sector
• This group of individuals (youth) constitutes 50% of the population of most developing countries, they stand a higher chance of experiencing health issues or challenges
• Health issues faced by young people

  • Sexual behavior and reproductive health
  • Mental health
  • Drug and alcohol-related health issues
  • Nutrition/Eating behavior
  • Personal hygiene
  • Unsafe abortion
  • Crime, violence, trauma, and injuries
  • Abuse leading to health problems
• Sexual behavior and reproductive health issues

  • During the youth phase, youngsters change in their physical appearance as well as their reproductive development, they tend to be sexually active and thus irrational decisions are sometimes made, risky sexual behaviors can lead to sexually transmitted disease (STD), HIV AIDS, reproductive tract infections (RTI)
• Mental health


  • Mental health refers an individual's cognitive, behavioral, and emotional well-being, the phase of youth carries special significance for mental health, since most mental and substance use disorders have onset (begin) in young age or adolescence, mental health gives an individual the feeling of worth, control and understanding of internal and external functioning, factors: domestic violence, sexual abuse, physical abuse, limited employment opportunities, types of mental health issues: anxiety disorders, depression, stress, schizoaffective disorder
• Drug and alcohol related health issues

  • Drug use is a health hazard with particular relevance to young people, youth or adolescent psychoses occur in association with high consumption of drugs, persistent drug use may hinder development, high use of cannabis results in mental disorder of Schizophrenia, the illness promotes dangerous behavior such as tendency to harm self and others, as with alcohol abuse, the consumer tend to fail in many aspects: school, work, relationships, dependency on these substances lead to health conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, digestive problems, and liver disease, social issues: high crime rate, prostitution, factors: unstable family unit, inadequate support from community elders, peer groups, abuse
• Nutrition and eating habits

  • Eating a balanced and varied diet promotes young people's health, growth, and intellectual development, one of the developmental tasks of youths is to choose a diet which meets basic energy and protein requirements and also provides other essential nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and other elements needed for healthy growth, insufficiency of minerals and vitamins may cause health problems immediately as well as during adulthood, factors contributing poor diet: poverty rate, unemployment, over crowded family units, inadequate knowledge on nutrition, and economic functions of their country as a whole