'Bear Feels Sick': A Systematic Review of Picture Books About Physical Symptoms in Dutch Children's Literature.

The search covered only the public library catalogue of Groningen province, so picture books available elsewhere in the Netherlands or in other countries may not have been included. Only books written in or translated into Dutch were included, and all were by Western authors, so books from other cultures may describe symptoms, causes and care quite differently. Deciding what moral each story carried was done by the researchers themselves and could reflect their own background, although every book was double coded and discussed. Only books where the main character is the one who is ill were included, so stories about a parent being ill were left out and may show a different picture. Informational books whose only purpose is to teach, such as books explaining what happens in a hospital, were excluded, even though children meet them in schools and daycare.

The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The work was funded by the Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek (NWO), the Dutch research council; the paper does not say that the funder had any role in choosing the books, coding them or writing the report.

Do not read this as evidence that these books shape how children cope with being ill. The review only recorded what is printed on the page. No children were interviewed or followed, and no one tested whether reading a book changes what a child does when they feel unwell, so what children actually take from these stories is still unknown.