The health status of South African youth joining Youth Employment Initiatives: a health promotion opportunity.

Youth Employment Initiatives (YEIs) support young adults to enhance their employability but infrequently consider their health. This study assessed the physical and mental health of South African youth starting YEIs to understand the need for integrated health service components. Youth (18-35 years, n = 193, 76% female, mean age 24.6 ± 3.6 years) were recruited using a purposive sampling strategy from the YEI programme within South Africa. Sociodemographic and health data were collected by survey, with a subsample (n = 90) undergoing cardiometabolic assessment. One-third of youth reported thoughts of suicide or self-harm in the past 2 weeks, with significantly higher levels of depression and anxiety in youth under 25 years. Obesity levels and blood pressure were significantly higher in youth 25-35 years (68% overweight/obese, 26% hypertensive). Our findings support the urgent need for integrated physical and mental health support within youth programmes to reduce both the future and current burden of non-communicable diseases.