American kids' health is deteriorating

Newsweek

6 days ago

Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
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The health of American children has been deteriorating for nearly two decades, a new study warns.
From rising mortality rates to an alarming surge in chronic conditions, obesity and mental health struggles, U.S. children are facing a mounting health emergency that experts say demands urgent national attention.
Published in the journal JAMA Network, the study analyzed health data collected from 2007 to 2023 by eight comprehensive sources, including national mortality statistics, five large-scale surveys and pediatric electronic health records.
"We are experiencing a crisis in child health—this is clear and really not debatable," pediatrician and paper author Dr. Christopher B. Forrest told Newsweek.
Girl works at a computer and eats fast food.
Girl works at a computer and eats fast food.
Yuliya Apanasenka
According to Forrest, the decline in the health of American children has been going on for several decades—and is affecting virtually all aspects of health.
He said: "Because children are rapidly developing and depend on adults and institutions, [such as] for the health, wellbeing and resilience, they are the 'canaries in the coal mine'—the first indicators that we have a more generalized deterioration in the ecosystem that all of us live within."
One of the most jarring findings is how much more likely children are to die in the United States compared to those in other high-income countries.
Infants under one are 78 percent more likely to die in the U.S. than in 18 comparable nations in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
For children and adolescents aged one to 19, the mortality risk is 80 percent higher.
Leading causes include prematurity and sudden unexpected infant death among babies, while firearm deaths and motor vehicle crashes are driving youth mortality rates.
In fact, U.S. children were 15 times more likely to die by firearm than their counterparts abroad.
The study also found a sharp increase in chronic health conditions among children. Between 2011 and 2023, the percentage of children aged 3–17 with at least one chronic condition rose from 39.9 percent to 45.7 percent in pediatric health systems and from 25.8 percent to 31 percent in the general population.
Obesity now affects one in five children, early puberty—particularly among girls—is becoming more common, and one in seven girls begins menstruation before age 12.
These changes, researchers warn, may be linked to broader environmental, nutritional and societal stressors that are yet to be fully understood.
Beyond physical health, children's emotional and functional wellbeing also showed signs of significant decline.
From increased sleep disturbances to more frequent activity limitations, American children today are also struggling in ways that go beyond the clinical.
Rates of depressive symptoms, loneliness and physical complaints such as headaches and stomachaches have also worsened.
While many of the adverse trends have worsened in the past decade, some began much earlier. U.S. childhood mortality, once on par with peer countries in the 1960s, began to diverge in the 1970s.
Obesity among 2–19-year-olds grew from just 5.2 percent in the early 1970s to nearly 20 percent by 2018. Average sleep duration has also declined steadily since the early 20th century.
Forrest told Newsweek that there are no quick fixes or simple solutions. Essentially, we need to completely transform the environment in which children develop.
"We need the collective intelligence and wisdom of parents to collaborate on developing the solutions that will start to shift the places where children live, grow and learn from environments that are unhealthful to ones that are health promoting," he said.
Forrest's advice to parents is to engage with extended family, the wider community and, most importantly, their children.
"Creating a loving, nurturing, caring and responsive home environment is critical for children's healthy development," he said.
"We cannot as parents do that alone. We need a relational web of support and care. Make family a priority, more important than a higher paying job."
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Reference
Forrest, C. B., Koenigsberg, L. J., Eddy Harvey, F., Maltenfort, M. G., & Halfon, N. (2025). Trends in US children's mortality, chronic conditions, obesity, functional status, and symptoms. JAMA. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2025.9855