Statistics Portugal releases the main results of the Children’s Module carried out in the 4th quarter of 2025 in the context of the National Health Survey (INS). At the methodological level, it integrates the new Estimates of Resident Population (based on administrative data) into the calibration model (see the Technical note).
The results of the children's module of the National Health Survey 2025 indicate that:
- 92.3% of children aged under 15 report their health as good or very good; 88.3% have teeth and gums assessed as good or very good; and 96.8% brush their teeth daily
- 4.0%, or 58 thousand, were blind or had vision problems, and 0.9% (13 thousand) lived with hearing loss
- 10.7% of children aged 6 to 14 have severe difficulties concentrating, remembering or making age-appropriate decisions
- Allergies are the condition that most commonly affects children under the age of 15 (14.9%), with prevalence increasing with age; attention deficit or hyperactivity disorders affect 6.8%, with the prevalence rising to over 9 % from the age of 6; speech and communication disorders affect 5.9% of children, with the highest prevalence among those aged 6 to 9; and 4.6% have asthma, with the prevalence increasing with age
- 18.9% of children have had their ability to perform activities considered usual for their age affected by illnesses or health problems
- 44.7% of children aged 6 to 14 missed school due to illness, an accident or another health problem – of these, the majority missed between 1 and 3 days of school
- 87.3% of children aged under 15 consulted healthcare professionals – of these, 83.0% did so at least once for preventive reasons
- The prevalence of obesity affects 12.9% of children aged 5 to 14 years and 22.6% are overweight
- 68.6% of children aged 6 to 14 eat fruit every day and 68.0% regularly consume animal or plant-based protein, but only 44.4% eat vegetables and salads every day
- 44.7% of children aged 6 to 14 regularly eat fast food or ultra-processed foods, and 46.5% drink sugar-sweetened soft drinks
