The Surveillance System on Children aged 0-2: results of the 2022 data collection. Edited by Enrica Pizzi, Michele Antonio Salvatore, Margherita Tommasella, Silvia Andreozzi, Serena Donati (Supplemento 1, al n. 3 volume 38, 2025 del Notiziario dell'ISS)

Scientific evidence has broadened the understanding of the importance of the first 1,000 days of life, between conception and the first two years, as a period of maximum opportunity and vulnerability for the children development. The international recommendations underline the importance of investing in this time window, to ensure positive experiences for children, and to address and reduce health inequalities. In this context, the Surveillance of Children 0-2 years was promoted by the Ministry of Health, coordinated by the Istituto Superiore di Sanità (National Institute of Health, Italy) and carried out in collaboration with the Italian Regions and Autonomous Provinces. This report presents the findings from the second round of this surveillance, carried out in 2022. The study focused on mothers, who were asked to complete an anonymous questionnaire during the vaccination sessions of their children aged 0-2 year. Over 35,000 questionnaires were collected, and the participation rate exceeded 95% across all Regions.The results showed a wide variability in exposure to both protective or risky behaviours, highlighting significant territorial differences and identifying opportunities for improvement across all investigated health determinants.