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HEALTH

No screens for under-threes: France to give new baby advice to parents

French parents have been told to keep children younger than three away from screens in the government's latest book of health-related advice for under-18s. Here's what else they've recommended.

Published: 6 March 2018 16:23 CET
No screens for under-threes: France to give new baby advice to parents
Photo: Patryk_Kosmider/Depositphotos
The government's new “health book” (or “carnet de santé” in French) which contains the latest medical advice for children is set to appear at the beginning of April. 
 
The book, which is free and traditionally handed over by the maternity ward or a doctor, will replace the edition which has been distributed since 2006 with the updated version designed to “take into account the scientific advances and the expectations of health professionals and families”.
 
Here's a selection of some of the latest recommendations to be included. 
 
No screens for under-threes
 
In a world where the number of screens is generally increasing, with televisions, smartphones and iPads all competing for a person's attention, this new addition to the carnet de santé is likely to have parents a little concerned. 
 
Not only is the government advising parents to keep children younger than three away from screens, they say they shouldn't be in the same room as one even if they're not watching it. 
 
 
11 compulsory vaccinations
 
One of the main changes is the new vaccination schedule.
 
Previously only three child vaccinations were obligatory by law in France: diphtheria, tetanus and polio.
 
But for children born since January 1st, 11 immunisations against conditions such as measles, hepatitis B, meningitis C, rubella, mumps and whooping cough are now obligatory. 
 
France plans to make 11 vaccinations compulsory for children

 
Babies under six months in the same bedroom
 
Another new addition to the list is the recommendation that parents should share a bedroom with babies until they are at least six-months-old. 
 
This is to reduce the risk of unexpected infant death.
 
Use glass bottles 
 
Parents have also been told to use glass bottles rather than those that contain bisphenol A or BPA, an industrial chemical used to make certain plastics, for the sake of the environment. 
 
Don't shake your baby
 
Included on the list is the explicit warning that “shaking a baby can leave them disabled for life.”
 
“If you are exasperated, lay your baby down on the bed (on their back), leave the room and ask for the help of a loved one (family, friend, neighbour …) or a professional,” the book recommends.

HEALTH

Are Danes cutting back on cigarettes and alcohol?

Danish stores sold a significantly lower quantity of alcohol and cigarettes over the counter last year, new data from Statistics Denmark show.

Published: 14 June 2024 07:42 CEST
Are Danes cutting back on cigarettes and alcohol?

Some 3,852 cigarettes were sold year, which amounts to 804 per person over the age of 18. But that compares to a figures of 854 per person on 2022.

Cigarette sales in Denmark have been declining since 2018.

Sales of sprits, beer and wine fell by 7.8 percent, 5.3 percent and 0.9 percent respectively.

Danish business sold the equivalent of 44.4 million litres of pure alcohol, which works out at 11.9 units per week on average for each person over the age of 18.

Although that is a lower value than in 2022, it still exceeds the amount recommended by the Danish Health Authority (Sundhedsstyrelsen).

The Health Authority recommends that adults over 18 drink no more than 10 units per week and no more than four in a single day.

READ ALSO: Should Denmark raise the minimum age for buying alcohol?

“The numbers are still too high and it’s an average that could have a skewed distribution,” University of Southern Denmark professor, Janne Tholstrup, said in relation to the alcohol sales figures. Tholstrup has published research on Denmark’s alcohol culture.

That is in spite of a 30-year-trend of falling alcohol consumption, according to the professor.

“The majority of Danes stay under the recommended 10 unite per week. That means there is a large group with a persistently excessive consumption of alcohol,” she said.

The Statistics Denmark figures also show that sales of loose tobacco – such as the type used in roll-up cigarettes and pipes – also fell last year. Some 58 tonnes less were sold compared to 2022.

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