A new study from University College London, King's College London, and the University of Oxford reveals that younger generations in the UK are not healthier than their predecessors. Analyzing data from 51 studies tracking people born between 1946 and 2002, researchers found a pattern they call 'generational health drift.'
For conditions like obesity, mental health issues, and diabetes, poorer health outcomes were more common among recent generations compared to earlier ones at the same age. The trend was most pronounced for obesity and mental illness, with diabetes rates worsening between Generation X and Baby Boomers.
Researchers suggest that changes in social and environmental risk factors, such as unhealthy diets and reduced physical activity, may be driving the decline. They emphasize that these factors are largely preventable and call for greater public policy investment to support growing numbers of people with long-term conditions.