A comment in The BMJ calls for countries worldwide to 'ban this counterproductive form of discipline'. Citation and extracts below
CITATION: Editorial: Physical punishment of children: ineffective and harmful
Anja Heilmann et al.
BMJ 2026; 394 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj-2026-100233 (Published 16 July 2026) [restricted access]
Cite this as: BMJ 2026;394:e100233
'Physical, or corporal, punishment—euphemistically known as smacking, spanking, and slapping—involves hitting or otherwise hurting children to modify their behaviour. Most countries do not consider it assault and permit its use in homes and schools. Unicef estimates that over 1 billion of the world’s 2.4 billion children are disciplined this way each year, making it the commonest form of violence against children.
In 2025 a World Health Organization report cited “overwhelming scientific evidence” that physical punishment is linked entirely with harms and no benefits to children, describing it as a public health concern requiring policy and educational interventions to end its use. This body of research from lower and higher income settings shows four main findings.
First, physical punishment is ineffective at improving children’s behaviour in the short or long term...
Second, it increases the risks of numerous harms to children...
Third, physical punishment can escalate into physical abuse...
Fourth, findings of harm are not confined to specific countries or cultures...
A comparison in 88 countries, including 52 low and middle income countries, found that countries with bans, including Colombia and Thailand, had 31% lower rates of youth engaged in physical aggression than countries without bans, such as China, Iraq, and Uganda.A longitudinal analysis in 97 countries including 54 low and middle income countries found lower rates of youth suicide in countries with bans, such as Brazil, Tunisia, and Ukraine, compared with countries that do not have bans, such as Mexico and Sri Lanka...
Physical punishment by parents and carers remains legal in 129 countries, including England and Northern Ireland... We should all remind our political leaders that banning physical punishment of children is mandated by international law — and an evidence based priority for children’s health and wellbeing.'
HIFA profile: Neil Pakenham-Walsh is coordinator of HIFA (Healthcare Information For All), a global health community that brings all stakeholders together around the shared goal of universal access to reliable healthcare information. HIFA has 20,000 members in 180 countries, interacting in four languages and representing all parts of the global evidence ecosystem. HIFA is administered by Global Healthcare Information Network, a UK-based nonprofit in official relations with the World Health Organization. Email: neil@hifa.org