Left behind: inequalities in the negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among adolescents in the WHO European Region: impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people’s health and well-being from the findings of the HBSC survey round 2021/2022

ABSTRACT

This report summarizes findings from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey round 2021/2022regarding the unequal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescents’ health and health behaviours in22 countries and regions of the WHO European Region. Risk factors contributed to different extents to thepandemic’s impact on adolescents’ health and health behaviours. More girls and 15-year-olds than boys andyounger adolescents reported negative impacts of the pandemic on the four health outcomes considered.The largest gender and age inequalities were seen in mental health. Social inequalities, such as havingan immigration background, coming from a family that was not well-off, having at least one unemployedparent and/or living in a single-parent household, were linked to adolescents experiencing negative impactsof the pandemic on their health and health behaviours in many countries and regions. Having experiencedthe hospitalization of a family member due to COVID-19 was also an important risk factor for negative healthand health behaviour outcomes in more than half of the countries and regions. The large cross-country/regionvariation in the contribution (or lack of contribution) of different risk factors to negative pandemic impactsunderlines the need for country-/region-specific interventions in times of crises.