The 2024 Endis survey finds violent discipline declining, but excess weight, food insecurity, energy drink consumption, heavy screen use and mental health concerns remain widespread among Uruguay’s adolescents.
Uruguay’s latest national child development survey paints a mixed picture of adolescent health: while some violent discipline measures have eased over the past decade, excess weight, food insecurity, heavy screen use and early exposure to energy drinks remain widespread, according to figures presented this week by the Ministry of Social Development and the National Institute of Statistics.
The 2024 round of the Nutrition, Child Development and Health Survey, known as Endis, is the first to include direct responses from 10- to 14-year-olds. The survey was carried out by the Ministry of Social Development, the Ministry of Public Health and the INE, with support from the University of the Republic and Unicef, and it follows the same cohort as earlier rounds in 2013, 2015 and 2019. That long-running design is intended to show how children’s health and living conditions change over time, rather than offering only a snapshot.
One of the clearest findings is the rise in excess weight. The daily La Diaria reported that 44.1% of the children and adolescents surveyed now have overweight or obesity, up from 36.8% in 2013. The share with obesity or severe obesity stands at 17.5%. The survey also found that the problem is more common in higher-income households, affecting 46.1% in the top income third versus 40.5% in the lowest. At the same time, 2.1% of those surveyed showed signs of stunting, while 41.9% of households experienced some level of food insecurity and 15.5% faced moderate or severe food insecurity.
The report also highlights a striking pattern in eating behaviour. Although most adolescents said they believed their weight was appropriate, a notable minority reported trying to lose weight through practices that can be harmful, including fasting for 24 hours or more. That was far more common among girls than boys. The survey’s results suggest that concerns about body image and weight are cutting across both affluent and poorer households, even as the most severe food insecurity remains concentrated among families with the lowest incomes.
Energy drinks emerged as another major concern. According to the survey, nearly 60% of adolescents had tried them at least once, with use higher among boys and older teenagers. More than four in ten had consumed them in the previous year, and almost one in five had done so in the previous month. The survey found an association between frequent energy drink use and shorter sleep, though it stopped short of saying one caused the other. This matters because another national survey cited by El País found similarly high and rising use among adolescents, suggesting the habit is becoming deeply embedded in youth culture.
Digital life is also shaping daily routines. The survey found that 95% of adolescents go online every day and 80.7% use a mobile phone daily. Yet many reported difficulty setting boundaries: some said they skipped meals or sleep because they stayed connected, others described family conflict linked to screen time, and a further group said it had affected school marks. Only 38% met the recommendation of at least one hour of physical activity a day. On the emotional side, 10.9% showed clinically significant internalising symptoms such as anxiety, depression or withdrawal, and at least 8% reported school bullying in the two months before the survey, though the report said that figure should be treated as a minimum.
The survey also sheds light on the home environment. Nearly a quarter of adolescents said they were left alone at home during the week outside school hours, with the proportion rising with age. Girls and young women who lived with a partner were found to spend substantial time on housework, underscoring how care and domestic responsibilities still fall unevenly. On discipline, 34.5% said they had experienced at least one violent method in the previous month, although the report says such practices have declined since 2013. Even so, the data point to a wider picture in which public health concerns are no longer limited to nutrition alone, but stretch across diet, sleep, mental wellbeing, household stress and the everyday pressures facing Uruguayan adolescents.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
