Absence due to illness among toddlers in day-care centres in relation to child group structure

The present work demonstrates a close association between illness-associated absence among children below 4 y of age in day-care, and the age-related composition of the child groups. The study, which spanned a 4 y period and is based on illness-related absence from day-care in a Stockholm suburb, shows that morbidity decreases significantly among young children as age-integration in the groups is intensified. Absence due to illness was most common in toddler groups of infants up to 3 y of age. Among sibling groups of children in the age range 0–6 y, illness-related absence was lower among toddlers compared to toddlers in age-separated groups, and significantly lower in extended sibling groups in the age range 0–12 y. Morbidity among children older than 3 y was not affected in the same way by group structure.