Invited commentary: The long term impact of forced migration during childhood on adult health

Abstract

Saarela and Elo (SSM-Population Health; Volume 2, December 2016, Pages 813–823) provide new evidence of early life forced displacement not being adversely associated with adult health. Their study highlights some of the challenges to identifying a causal effect of childhood exposure on adult health in the context of complex emergencies. Importantly, it opens up for future research that can address commonly recognized sources of bias and identify intervening pathways linking forced migration with adult health outcomes.