As Teen Mental Health Worsens, Study Links School Year To Suicide Risks
Researchers find that suicide risks for kids and teens rise during the school year. A separate study shows an increase in hospitalizations and ER visits for suicide attempts and ideation rose among children and teens from 2016 to 2021. In other mental health news: loneliness, cognitive decline, and dementia.
Bloomberg:
Suicide Risk Rises For Children And Teens During School Year, Study Says
The risk of suicide for kids and teens rises during the school year, researchers said, reflecting the impact of its social and learning pressures on young people’s mental health. Children from the ages of 10 to 18 are more likely to appear at hospitals for suicidal thoughts or attempts in the spring and fall than during summer vacation, according to a study from the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston released Wednesday. The pattern paused in the beginning of 2020, when many schools emptied during the early days of Covid-19. (Griffin, 7/19)
NBC News:
Teens Increasingly At The Hospital For Suicidal Thoughts And Attempts
According to the research, published Wednesday in the journal JAMA Network Open, nearly 66% of the cases were girls, and the average age was 15. The study also revealed seasonal trends: ER visits and hospitalizations were 15% higher in April and 24% higher in October than the January rate, which the study used as a baseline because it was close to the annual average. However, 2020 was an exception both to the seasonal fluctuations and the increase in suicidality over time. (Pandey, 7/19)
On loneliness —
Fortune:
New National Legislation Targets U.S. Loneliness Crisis
This week, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) introduced national legislation to address the loneliness epidemic. “Loneliness is one of the most serious, misunderstood problems facing America today. It may not sound like a problem government should care about, but I believe it’s irresponsible for policymakers to continue ignoring this epidemic,” Murphy said in a press release on the legislation released Tuesday. (Mikhail, 7/19)
In news on cognitive decline, dementia —
Bloomberg:
White Men Experience Biggest Cognitive Declines After Retirement
Post-retirement cognitive declines were almost three times more acute among White Americans compared with their Black peers, and twice as large for men as for women. That’s according to a study published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. It found that immediately after retirement, white adults tended to experience a significant worsening of cognitive function, whereas for Black retirees the decline was minimal. (Tanzi, 7/19)
Stat:
Dementia Risk Linked To Living In Disadvantaged Areas: Study
Americans who live in neighborhoods with less socioeconomic advantage may have a higher risk of dementia, according to a new study published Wednesday in JAMA Neurology. This can be true regardless of an individual’s background, according to the study, which found that people living in areas of the U.S. with the lowest levels of income, education, employment, and housing quality had a 1.17 times higher risk of developing dementia compared to residents of the least disadvantaged areas. (Castillo, 7/20)
Also —
KFF Health News:
A Mom Owed Nearly $102,000 For Hospital Care. Her State Attorney General Said To Pay Up
Bridget Narsh’s son, Mason, needed urgent help in January 2020, so she was offered the chance to send him to Central Regional Hospital, a state-run mental health facility in Butner, North Carolina. The teen, who deals with autism and post-traumatic stress and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders, had started destroying furniture and running away from home. His mother worried for the safety of Mason and the rest of the family. (Clasen-Kelly, 7/20)
