The mental health of high school students has largely worsened in the past decade, except between 2021 and 2023, when things improved slightly. Those are among the findings of a new report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , which features results from the latest Youth Risk Behavior Survey , conducted every two years. "I don't think we are out of the woods by any means in terms of the crisis in youth mental health," says Kathleen Ethier , director of the CDC's Division of Adolescent and School Health.
"However, we're seeing some really promising small yet significant improvements in a couple of key places," she adds. For example, between 2021 and 2023, overall reports of poor mental health went down. "When we look at the persistent sadness and hopelessness, we go from 42% down to 40%, which I realize is a small decrease, but it's statistically significant," notes Ethier.
And while girls and LGBTQ+ students are still more likely to report feelings of sadness and hopelessness, the share of girls reporting this went down from 57% in 2021 to 53% in 2023. Similarly, the portion of Black students who said they had attempted suicide in the past year went down over that two-year period — from 14% to 10%. And the share of Black students who said they had made a suicide plan in the past year went down from 18% to 16%, and for Hispanic students that percentage went from 19% in 2021 to 16% in 2023.
"I am very heartened by the slight positive change," wrote Dr. Vera Feue.