Young Australians are more likely to survive infancy and are improving at school but they are getting fatter and suffering greater rates of abuse and neglect, according to a snapshot of child health and wellbeing.
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Infant mortality rates dropped dramatically between 2006 and 2012, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data to be released on Thursday.
The proportion of babies dying before their first birthday decreased by almost 25 per cent nationally over the six-year period however deaths remain high in the Northern Territory, where the rate is more than twice the national average.
AIHW spokeswoman Fadwa Al-Yaman said the decline was due to improvements in infant health overall and better education about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
‘‘A lot of the decrease in infant mortality is due to the decline in SIDS which has been going down for a number of years,’’ Dr Al-Yaman said.
Substantiated cases of abuse and neglect of children aged 0-12 surged by 12 per cent between 2007-08 and 2011-12. NSW had the second highest proportion of proven abuse and neglect cases behind the Northern Territory, which had a rate almost four times the national average.
Immunisation rates for children under two have stagnated despite campaigns aimed at boosting vaccination. Across Australia rates rose by 0.3 per cent to 92.8 per cent between 2008 and 2012. In NSW rates rose from 92.4 per cent to 92.8 per cent over the same period.
Dr Al-Yaman said that while an immunisation rate of more than 90 per cent was enough to give the population herd immunity, she warned parents not to be complacent.
‘‘If the immunisation rates drop, the diseases can be transmitted again,’’ she said. ‘‘We need to be vigilant about maintaining herd immunity.’’
As of this year, children cannot be enrolled at a childcare facility unless they are fully immunised or an approved exemption is provided.
The number of children attending preschool has jumped under the federal government’s universal access policy which aims to give quality early childhood education to all youngsters in the year before they start school.
Between 2012 and last year, preschool attendance rose from 86.1 per cent to 93.6 per cent nationally, and from 73.5 per cent to 80.3 per cent in NSW.
The report revealed improvements in literacy with 96.1 per cent of year 5 students meeting or exceeding the national minimum standard last year, up from 91 per cent in 2008. Numeracy levels had also improved marginally, with 93.4 per cent of students meeting or exceeding the standard last year, compared with 92.7 per cent in 2008.
Obesity remains an ongoing health problem with the proportion of overweight or obese children increasing from 23.1 per cent in 2007-08 to 26 per cent in 2011-12. NSW children outstripped the national average with the rate of overweight or obese children rising from 21.1 per cent to 27.7 per cent over the same period.
