The COVID-19 pandemic has had a wide range of effects on the mental health of children, including an increase in anxiety and depression. Certain factors, such as access to social support, were helpful.
Mental health relates to a wide variety of human functioning, and previous research has shown that mental health changes among children are associated with both immediate and long-term changes to physical health, health risk behavior, social relationships, and employment. Public health surveillance can be used to monitor trends across populations and increase knowledge about demographic variation in mental health. This article, published in the journal, MMWR Supplements, discusses the results of large-scale public health surveillance.
This article relied on nine data systems that track indicators of children’s mental health, including the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, and others. Each data system was designed to monitor different metrics. Each data system is discussed in detail, compared, and the distinct conclusions drawn from each system are discussed in detail.
This report details many distinct findings and their indications, including an association between health disparities and a lack of economic resources, increased levels of depression in the Hispanic population, and a high prevalence of anxiety in white children. Children living in households with low income levels were found to exhibit the highest rates of ADHD and conduct problems, and children whose parents had higher than a high school level of education were found to exhibit more positive mental health indicators.
The researchers conclude by noting that data are not sufficient to provide a comprehensive overview of children’s mental health as a whole. However, the data systems described in the article do provide actionable information on mental health indicators.
Reference: Bitsko, R. H., Claussen, A. H., Lichstein, J., Black, L. I., Jones, S. E., Danielson, M. L., . . . Ghandour, R. M. (2022). Mental Health Surveillance Among Children – United States, 2013-2019. MMWR Suppl, 71(2), 1-42. doi:10.15585/mmwr.su7102a1
