The importance of large-scale (cross-national) data collection on early adolescents (10-15 years old): shedding light on socioeconomic and gender inequalities in health

Impactful policies in the area of adolescent health require data that provide an accurate and representative picture of how young people live and how their health and well-being are shaped by the social, economic and cultural context in which they live. Robust, large-scale surveys are able to supply powerful and sustained information on the health of different demographic groups that can illuminate health inequity. Such data have been pivotal in uncovering and highlighting gender and socioeconomic inequalities in adolescent health.