China has a large population of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet there remains a significant gap between available service resources and the needs of these children.To enhance the capacity of the national maternal and child health system in serving children with ASD, the China Maternal and Child Health Association initiated the "Standardized Construction of a Three-Tier Autism Prevention and Intervention Network" project.The Committee on Autism Prevention and Intervention organized experts to develop this consensus, which addresses the establishment of a three-tier network and outlines standardized approaches for screening, diagnosis, rehabilitation therapy, and family support.

Neuroscience is one of the most promising research fields in the 21st century,holding significant importance for studies on child development and education.This article begins with findings from neuroscience research to outline the fundamental patterns of brain development in children.It then analyzes the impact of brain science on child development from three aspects:cognitive development,emotional development,and social development.Specifically,it examines influences on attention,types of memory,and thinking abilities within cognitive development.The article proposes educational recommendations based on neuroscience to promote healthy brain development in children,including providing appropriate environmental stimuli,fostering good living habits,emphasizing emotional support and guidance,and implementing personalized education.These suggestions aim to offer scientific guidance for the healthy growth of children.Additionally,the article offers a perspective on the future prospects of brain technology in the field of child health development.

Neuroscience, as a comprehensive discipline that studies the structure, function, and developmental patterns of the nervous system, provides a critical theoretical foundation for understanding human cognition, emotions, and behavior.The rapid advancements in neuroscience research have offered fresh perspectives on child health and development. This paper systematically explores the intrinsic connections between neuroscience and child health development, with a particular focus on the characteristics of brain development and its influencing factors during the critical period of 0 - 6 years.Research on children′s brain health development reveals the complexity of the interaction between neural development and environmental factors.Moving forward, it is essential to integrate multidisciplinary findings and develop neuroscience-based intervention strategies to create an optimal growth environment for children.

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) in children is a common neurodevelopmental disorder with a steadily increasing prevalence.It seriously impairs children's social adaptability and the development of their physical and mental health.Studies have shown that if DCD is not identified and intervened early, motor difficulties may persist and have long-term negative impacts on academic performance, social functioning, and mental health.Early identification and timely intervention are crucial for slowing disease progression, improving functional outcomes, and promoting social participation.Compared to adults, children with neurodevelopmental disorders have a higher rate of comorbidity.In clinical practice, in addition to accurately distinguishing DCD from other neurodevelopmental disorders, close attention should also be paid to its comorbid characteristics to facilitate the development of more precise and individualized diagnosis and treatment strategies.

Learning difficulty is a commonly used clinical term that broadly represents a syndrome and narrowly refers to specific learning disabilities. Its etiology encompasses physiological, psychological, and environmental factors. Clinically, a comprehensive assessment is required to identify the spectrum of learning difficulties, make a diagnosis and differential diagnosis, and provide interventions and treatments. The child health care physicians play a crucial bridging role in clinical practice. Beyond assessment and referral, they must also emphasize the integration of medical and educational approaches and interdisciplinary team collaboration.

Learning difficulties are a common and complex behavioral issue in child development, characterized by significantly low academic achievement, which severely impacts children's academic performance and mental health. In recent years, with the deepening understanding of learning difficulties, the early identification and intervention of these difficulties have increasingly become an important topic in the field of child healthcare. Based on both domestic and international research evidence as well as clinical practical experience, this article systematically elaborates on the approaches and strategies for the early identification and intervention of learning difficulties, aiming to provide guidance for child healthcare professionals.

The period from 0 to 3 years of age is the most rapid phase of brain development in infants and young children, making it a critical window for early intervention. Providing high-quality family nurturing care is a crucial means of maximizing the early developmental potential of infants and toddlers. Enhancing the capacity of families in caregiving has become a key strategy for promoting the physical, mental, and comprehensive development of children aged 0 to 3. Professionals in child healthcare at maternal and child health institutions and community health centers play a significant role in guiding families in infant and toddler care. This article discusses key issues in the practice and guidance of family caregiving for infants and toddlers, emphasizing the importance of responsive care throughout the nurturing process, the mental health of caregivers, the early cultivation of socio-emotional skills in infants and toddlers, and the risks associated with screen exposure. It calls for increased attention from both primary heath care professionals and the broader society to collectively enhance the capacity of families in providing care for infants and toddlers.

The early years of life, particularly ages 0 - 8 (at least 0 - 3), have a profound influence on lifelong health and achievements. Parenting plays a critical role in shaping a child's potential. Integrating the five key nurturing care strategies for early childhood development, especially "responsive caregiving" and "early learning opportunities", into daily routines is both an art and an essential practice for parents and caregivers.The "love, talk, play, read" approach encourages that caregivers show positive emotions and love to their children, interact with them, follow children's lead and enter their world, help children focus and share their experiences, help children understand their surroundings, broaden their horizons, praise and appreciate their efforts, and guide them in learning rules, boundaries, and values. This article explores how to incorporate "love, talk, play, read" into parenting, enabling families and children to grow healthily together through interactive play and communication.

The prevalence of overweight and obesity among Chinese children and adolescents has been rising over the past years, varying by age, geographical location and rural/urban areas. Primary school students have the highest prevalence of obesity, who need sufficient guidance of healthy living. The northern regions maintain the highest level of childhood obesity, but have shown a stable trend in recent years. Meanwhile, the prevalence of childhood obesity in eastern regions has risen dramatically. In both urban and rural areas, the prevalence of childhood obesity has been increasing, and the growth rate in rural areas is greater, possibly leading to a reversal between urban and rural areas in the future. The interaction of national and social environments, school and family factors, individual elements have promoted overweight and obesity in Chinese youth. The impacts of migration on regional obesity increase cannot be ignored. Lockdown and staying at home due to COVID-19 have triggered long-term influence on children′s health. The prevention and control of obesity among Chinese children and adolescents is challenging. National policies and academic regulations have been issued by government and organizations. Schools, families, communities and individuals should communicate and cooperate with each other to execute comprehensive prevention and control of obesity among children and adolescents in a systematic perspective.

Insufficient physical activity and sedentary behavior are significant factors contributing to childhood overweight and obesity. Exercise offers numerous benefits to obese children in terms of their physical appearance, physical fitness, and mental well-being, making it a crucial component of comprehensive interventions for obese children. The mechanisms by which exercise exerts its effects include reducing adipose tissue, regulating cytokine and hormone levels, improving insulin resistance and inflammatory states, and promoting brain development. Although the specific dose-response relationship of exercise in obese children has not been clearly established, aerobic exercise or a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise is considered a more reasonable choice, and the application of high-intensity interval training in obese children is gradually increasing. In the future, there is a need to develop optimal forms of exercise that are effective, time-efficient and safe, and to explore whether new methods suitable for obese adults can be adapted for use in children and adolescents.

In recent years, the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) has been increasing annually and has become a globally recognized public health issue. Currently, rehabilitation treatment primarily focuses on educational interventions and behavioral modifications, emphasizing core symptom training, while there is insufficient management regarding children's health status. However, the health condition of children with ASD significantly impacts their prognosis. Based on this, Specialized Committee on Prevention and Treatment of Autism of China Maternal and Child Health Research Association has led the establishment of an expert panel to develop this consensus. This consensus aims to provide guidance for medical institutions at all levels, as well as for doctors, rehabilitation therapists, teachers, and parents. It advocates for the adoption of targeted, personalized, and developmentally appropriate health management strategies and family support plans based on the foundation of rehabilitation education and training,so as to support the children with ASD to reach their maximum potential.

The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder(ASD) has increased significantly in recent years. The early onset and long duration of the disease require long-term and intensive rehabilitation, which imposes a great burden of disease on the affected children and their families, and also increases the social cost.The diagnosis and treatment, rehabilitation, schooling, employment as well as social reintegration have become a hot issue of concern to the whole society at present and in the future. The government's policy safeguard is crucial to support the health transition and the well-being ofASD children. In the past decade, the Chinese government has paid more and more attention to this group and developed a series of policies to provide good health services and financial support for ASD children and their families. This paper is to review the national policies related to the ASD group in recent years, describe the policy characteristics, and conduct a policy content analysis based on the World Health Organization's theoretical framework to identify the key areas and potential gaps in China's ASD-related policies so as to provide some thoughts and suggestions for the benefits of stakeholders.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder in children characterized by impairments in social interactions and repetitive, stereotyped behaviors, with a globally increasing incidence rate. Its etiology is complex, involving both genetic and environmental factors. This article systematically summarizes the research progress on the neuropathological mechanisms of ASD, encompassing synaptic function, neurotransmitter imbalance, neural circuit abnormalities, neuroanatomical changes, and neuroinflammation. A deep understanding of the pathological mechanisms of ASD can provide scientific evidence and guidance for the development of related clinical treatment strategies.

In recent years, the incidence of food allergies has shown an upward trend, significantly impacting children's health, growth and development, as well as their quality of life. Despite the continuous improvement in the standardized diagnosis and treatment of food allergies in children, and the increasing attention paid to the monitoring and assessment of nutritional status, there are still many nutritional issues in clinical practice.Therefore, to ensure optimal nutrition for children with food allergies, it is recommended to adopt individualized and standardized management that takes into account factors such as the child's age, immune-mediated mechanisms, types and quantities of allergic foods, nutritional status, and dietary behaviors. This management should involve collaboration among allergists, dietitians, and parents, with regular follow-ups and monitoring of outcomes.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental disorder with increasing prevalence, posing significant challenges on families and society. As the number of children with mild symptoms and normal intellectual abilities rises, new opportunities for rehabilitation and intervention have emerged. In this context, it is crucial to explore ways to enhance parental caregiving skills to promote the recovery of ASD children. This editorial introduced a novel model that integrated caregiving into family-based interventions, particularly suited for early intervention in economically underdeveloped regions of China for children with ASD. Additionally, it provided valuable insights for resource-limited developing regions.

Tummy time is defined as awake prone positioning with unrestricted movement of limbs, which is encouraged and supervised by adults. As one of the most important physical activities during early stages of life, tummy time plays a critical role in promoting gross motor and cognitive development, preventing plagiocephaly and decreasing overweight and obesity. Recently, the World Health Organization and many countries worldwide issued guidelines on tummy time for infants; however, there is no tummy time guideline in China. To fill in this gap, the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, together with experts from sports science, pediatrics and child health care, has jointly developed the Infancy Tummy Time Guideline. As the first tummy time guideline for infants under one year old in China, it aims to provide professional recommendations for both child care professionals and parents. The guideline raises recommendations from four aspects, including principles for tummy time, duration and frequency, types of tummy time activities, and monitoring and evaluation, which gives professional guidance on scientific and safe tummy time activities for infants to meet their developmental needs.

Nonsuicidal self-injury, not aimed at suicide, is more common in adolescents and has various self-injury behaviors. Now there is a lack of effective prevention and treatment methods. The types of self-injury behaviors, risk factors, and the psychological needs of patients and treatment strategies are summarized in this review.

Adolescent depression is a serious public health issue that affects the mental health of millions of adolescents nationwide. This articleoutlines the current situation of adolescent depression, the challenges in diagnosis, and then introduces the assessment process, including collecting medical history, physical examination, using scales and diagnostic tools for assessment, as well as assessing comorbidities and suicide risk. Treatment should be based on individual′s characteristics and needs, selecting appropriate treatment methods, including psychotherapy, medication, and hospitalization when necessary, inpatient treatment. Psychotherapeutic methods include cognitive-behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy, while medication treatment requires careful selection of appropriate antidepressants and close monitoring of possible side effects.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder in children and is one of the most common childhood disorders in those with intellectual disability/developmental delay (ID/DD). Patients with this comorbidity present complex symptoms and significant functional impairments, leading to difficulties in diagnosis and suboptimal treatment outcomes. Treatment of ADHD comorbid with ID requires a comprehensive approach that includes both non-pharmacological and pharmacological interventions. Overall, multidisciplinary comprehensive assessment and treatment, combined with long-term follow-up and individualized management, can help improve the quality of life and functionality of patients with this comorbidity.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder originating in childhood.Multimodal assessments not only provide a wealth of information to facilitate a more precise diagnosis of ADHD,but also lends critical support to the decision-making process involved in creating tailored and personalized therapeutic interventions.Therefore,this article delineates and examines the current status of ADHD assessment,multimodal assessment methods,and future development trends,with the aim of improving the understanding of multimodal assessment methods and enhancing the quality of diagnosis and treatment for children with ADHD through their application.

Congenital hypothyroidism is a common thyroid disease in children. If it is not screened and treated in a timely manner, it can cause irreversible damage to intellectual and physical development. In January 2023, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued guideline on the screening and management of congenital hypothyroidism. The guideline provides detailed information on the pathophysiology of congenital hypothyroidism, neonatal screening programs and procedures, imaging and genetic diagnosis, long-term follow-up management, and evaluation. To make it more convenient for domestic pediatricians to use as a reference, this article provides an interpretation of some key contents by referring to domestic and foreign literature.

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with high incidence, low diagnosis rate and early onset of symptoms, which hinders thedevelopment ofphysical and mental health in children.Early identification and intervention of DCD can help reduce the lifelong adverse effects of the disease.However,general public in China still lacks awareness of this condition,and healthcare workers do not pay enough attention to the early screening and intervention of DCD.This paper summarizes the clinical characteristics, early screening and diagnosis of DCD, and expounds the clinical treatment of DCD from the two aspects of western and Chinese medicine intervention, and proposes the intervention treatment of integrated Chinese and western medicine for the first time, hoping to promote the development of early screening work, provide a new method for the research and development of DCD intervention in China, and improve the effectiveness of treatment.

Infants go through a transition period before fully adapting to a diversified balanced diet after being breastfed, during which foods introduced other than milk, aimed at supplementing energy and nutrients, are referred to as complementary foods. The process of introducing complementary foods is called complementary feeding (CF). The purpose and significance of adding complementary foods include not only supplementing energy and nutrients, but also promoting the development of eating skills and fine motor functions, establishing healthy eating and food-related psychological behaviors, preventing food allergies and other allergic diseases, and materializing diversity of children's gut flora. The feeding suggestions of introducing red meat paste first other than iron-fortified baby rice flour at the age of 6 months, and rapidly achieving diversified food exposure, is comply with the above principles. This article analyzes the purpose of infant CF, reviews the historical development of CF, and interprets relevant feeding recommendations based on new concepts of CF.

The early life period is a rapid period, as well as a critical/sensitive period for brain development. Proteins, long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs), iron, zinc, iodine, folate, choline, vitamins A, D, B₆, and B₁₂, all play a role in key neural development processes and thus influence brain development. Different brain regions or circuits have specific critical periods during different stages of development that depend on specific nutrients. Any nutrient deficiency during this period, even if corrected with supplementation, may still affect the trajectory of brain development and result in long-term cognitive and behavioral impairment. This article elucidates the effects of major nutrient deficiencies during early life on brain development, the possible sensitive/critical timing, and the impacts on long-term cognitive and behavioral development, providing insights for the prevention and intervention of nutritional diseases and psychiatric developmental disorders, and the promotion of early childhood development.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face varying degrees of difficulties in communication, language, and social interactions.This article analyzes the basic communication abilities, language development characteristics, and social pragmatic features of ASD children from the perspective of speech pathology, introduces corresponding assessment tools and proposes intervention strategies based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF).Meanwhile, this article emphasizes the adoption of a comprehensive intervention model that involves medical, family, and school components to enhance the communication, language, and social skills of this group comprehensively, with the aim of effectively improving their overall quality of life.

Both UNICEF and WHO mention that nurturing care is the most direct and effective approach to promoting early childhood development. Nurturing care emphasizes the importance of caregivers creating a suitable nurturing environment for the early development of children to promote their health and potential. The provision of early learning opportunities is an important aspect of creating a high-quality nurturing environment. This review focuses on the importance of establishing early learning opportunities, the methods of establishing early learning environments, implementing supportive strategies, and employing relevant evaluation methods, in order to provide reference and support for the establishment of early learning opportunities in nurturing care.

As the health disparities among children indirectly reflect the unfair distribution of national child healthcare, education, and other infrastructure, early childhood health development is a globally significant public health concern. On a global scale, 193 countries have endorsed The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and have explored various development strategies. The government placing children's interests and their rights at the core of their efforts to achieve theSustainable Development Goals(SDGs) is essential, China has made substantial progress in improving children's well-being over several decades of continuous effort and practice. However, challenges persist, including regional development imbalances, insufficient service capabilities in impoverished rural areas, and emerging issues like obesity, myopia, and mental health problems. China still needs to meet the growing health needs of children fully. From a global health perspective, this article systematically reviews the current status of global early childhood health development, outlines the significant milestones and best practices in China's early childhood development efforts, and also anticipates the focus and challenges in early childhood development in China based on global trends, hoping to contribute to further research in this field.

Anxiety disorders are prevalent in children, and early identification and treatment are crucial to minimize their impact on children's development. There are several subtypes of anxiety disorders, and the symptoms in children are diverse and atypical, often manifesting as behavioral and physical responses. Raising awareness of early identification can be achieved by reinforcing correct understanding, enhancing foresight, focusing on high-risk children, and maintaining sensitivity. This article provides a brief overview of common manifestations for identifying anxiety symptoms, the process of early identification and diagnosis of anxiety disorders, and a treatment plan for childhood anxiety disorders that integrates preventive intervention and comprehensive treatment.

It has been found that children and adolescents are highly susceptible to emotion-related mental disorders such as anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, bipolar and related disorder. If left untreated, it may severely impact the normal functioning of individuals, family and society, indicating the importance of early detection and interventionin preventing and treatingchildren and adolescents who are at high risk for emotion-related mental disorders. This article reviews different types and risk factors of emotion-related mental disorders in biological, family and school contexts, and identifies effective early detection methods and intervention strategies for children and adolescents with emotion-related mental disorders.Further implications and recommendations for early detection and intervention are also discussed.

High-risk children are confronted with a serial of medical issues, such as early development of emotionalization and socialization, in which there were significant difference in neurobehavioral development between high-risk children and normal children. Early intervention could promote healthy development of high-risk children. This study is aimed at early development of emotionalization and socialization to achieve the optimal potential development on high-risk children.

A report published in 2020 on the Nutrition and Chronic Disease Status of Chinese Residents revealed that the rate of faltering growth in Chinese children under 6 years old is 4.8%. This paper focuses primarily on the influence of weight deviation and nutrient deficiency on height (length) in children, and proposes early intervention measures, in order to provide valuable insights for healthcare professionals in the early prevention and treatment of faltering growth in clinical practice.

Dietary diversity can be a valuable indicator to predict nutrition adequacy of children, considering both macro- and micronutrients. Growing evidence suggests an association between dietary diversity and growth outcomes, especially linear growth. Hence, it is crucial for clinicians and parents to understand the importance of dietary diversity and its influence on children's nutrition through educational interventions, which could be effective in avoiding misuse of micronutrient supplements and reducing the development of stunting.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder(ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in childhood. Complex ADHD in children is relatively unique. These cases differ from typical ADHD cases in various ways, such as the atypical age at which symptoms appear or the presence of complex coexisting conditions. Additionally, the symptoms and functional impairment experienced by children with complex ADHD tend to be more severe.Therefore, these children require comprehensive interdisciplinary evaluation and treatment, as well as long-term standardized follow-up and chronic disease management.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders with unknown etiology, high heterogeneity and rapidly increasing prevalence. Early education and training is the main method of rehabilitation. The intervention for ASD in China is still developing. Various medical and rehabilitation education institutions have carried out a variety of interventions, hoping to improve the function of ASD and reduce the family and social burden caused by ASD. Based on this, this article analyzes and expounds the progress in evidence-based practice of ASD, the current situation of ASD intervention in China, the limitations and the future development direction.