title: Health in children: a conceptual framework for use in healthy ageing research.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  With increasing life expectancy, there is a focus on "healthy ageing". Most activities in this area focus on the elderly. However, the ageing process starts much earlier. Childhood offers an important window to lay a base for future healthy ageing. Thus, to address the full ageing process, we should include younger populations in ageing research. If we aim for healthy ageing across the life course, we need to clarify the meaning of health at different ages. The aim of this paper was to develop a conceptual framework for child health, which can be used as a starting point for healthy ageing research from a life course perspective.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We conceptualize child health as: "a dynamic state, not merely the absence of disease or disability, but also adequate resilience that permits optimal physical, mental, and social functioning, and optimal quality of life in order to achieve full potential and to become an independent, functional, and social individual." We propose five core dimensions of child health: Absence of physical disease; absence of psychiatric disorders; optimal physical, mental, and social functioning, including adequate development; good quality of life or well-being; and adequate resilience.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This conceptualization of child health and its dimensions can be seen as a first step towards building a framework for future studies into healthy ageing across the life course.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: j.felix@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Janine F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Felix
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: trudy.voortman@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Trudy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Voortman
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: e.vandenhooven@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Edith H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: van den Hooven
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: a.sajjad@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Ayesha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sajjad
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: e.leermakers@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Elisabeth T M
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Leermakers
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: a.tharner@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tharner
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: j.c.kiefte-dejong@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Jessica C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Kiefte-de Jong
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Paediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: l.duijts@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Liesbeth
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Duijts
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: f.verhulst@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Frank C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Verhulst
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: j.c.dejongste@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Johan C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: de Jongste
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: h.tiemeier@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Henning
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tiemeier
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: a.hofman@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hofman
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Internal Medicine, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: f.rivadeneira@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rivadeneira
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: h.a.moll@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Henriëtte A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Moll
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: h.raat@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Hein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Raat
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Paediatrics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: v.jaddoe@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Vincent W
authors.initials: VW
authors.lastname: Jaddoe
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: o.franco@erasmusmc.nl.
authors.forename: Oscar H
authors.initials: OH
authors.lastname: Franco
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D002648:Child; D002669:Child Welfare; D003210:Concept Formation; D006262:Health; D006803:Human Development; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008603:Mental Health; D010809:Physical Fitness; D011788:Quality of Life; D012107:Research Design
keywords: Ageing; Child; Health