Dutch children are the happiest in the western world, according to a new World Health Organisation survey of 41 European and North American countries, quoted in Wednesday’s Volkskrant.

Last year, a Unicef report also found that Dutch teenagers were the happiest in the developed world.
The WHO report found that Dutch teens were the most pleased with life. They get on well with their parents and have a large social network. Dutch children are also particularly happy with their schools, the Volkskrant said.
Some 204,000 children aged 11 to 15 took part in the survey between 2005 and 2006.
‘We have to conclude that we live in a country where it is good to grow up, for most children at least,’ Utrecht University researchers Wilma Vollebergh and Tom ter Bogt told the Volkskrant.
While Dutch children do watch a lot of tv, their drinking and smoking habits have changed. Dutch youngsters are no longer among the top-three biggest drinkers. They also smoke less than in other countries, the paper reported.
Other Dutch surveys also confirm the decline in smoking and drinking.