Improving Child and Adolescent Health Now: No New Research or Funding Required

Improving Child and Adolescent Health Now: No New Research or Funding Required 

Our nation’s youth are suffering a quiet health crisis with far-reaching and long-lasting effects. Additional research and programmatic funding are not required to take fundamental steps to improve the health of children and adolescents in this country. We know which conditions promote health and which lead to chronic illness. Research has already confirmed that lifestyle and environment play a central role in long-term health outcomes. Healthy nutrition, physical activity, tobacco and substance avoidance, timely health care, safe housing, and supportive relationships make the greatest difference. The best way to improve the health of our children is to act now to quickly close the gap between what we know and what we do to protect them.  

The Child and Adolescent Health Crisis 

By many measures, the physical health of U.S. children is poor and trending sharply in the wrong direction. Obesity rates in children and adolescents have climbed significantly since the 1980s, now affecting nearly one in five youth nationwide. Less than 10% of youth meet all three national guidelines for physical activity, sleep, and screen time exposure, and adherence declines with age.  These adverse patterns are contributing to a chronic disease crisis among our youth that was previously limited to adults.  

The mental and behavioral health of our youth has also deteriorated significantly. About 40% of high school students report persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, 20% have seriously considered attempting suicide, and 9% have reported attempting suicide. Homicide remains the third leading cause of death among people aged 10 to 24.  Nearly 10% of students report being threatened or injured with a weapon at school, and 15% have witnessed neighborhood violence. Substance use remains a concern as well. Although rates of alcohol and drug use have declined or remained stable, they are still too high.  

Immediate Steps for Healthier Children and Adolescents 

The current state of child and adolescent health in the U.S. often feels overwhelming to parents, clinicians, educators, and public health practitioners. The problems seem too complex for simple, low-cost solutions, so we continue to wait for research to deliver new insights and the funding to create new programs. Yet there are concrete, evidence-based actions we can take today in schools, homes, and communities that require no new dollars and no further study.  

Immediate Steps for Healthier Children and Adolescents 

The actions outlined below reflect what we already know about the conditions that help children and adolescents thrive. They are low-cost, high-impact interventions that are within reach of parents and educators now. These are not substitutes for longer-term, more comprehensive solutions involving the public health and health care systems, but rather immediate steps towards creating a healthier future for our youth. 

1. Stop selling ultra-processed, calorie dense, low nutrient food in schools. Remove vending machines and replace ultra processed foods in cafeterias with simple, healthy options to promote healthier meals. Prioritize whole foods, even if it means offering fewer choices. 
2. Enhance education on food literacy, cooking, and healthy eating. Use class exercises, homework, and extracurricular activities to teach students how to identify whole foods, how to navigate marketing and packaging, and how to prepare nutritious meals. 
3. Make physical activity a non-negotiable part of every school day. Ensure daily recess periods for grade school children with unstructured play time to decompress and self-regulate. Make 30 to 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity a universal expectation for middle and high school students.  
4. Start teaching social and emotional skills from kindergarten onward. Integrate lessons in empathy, self-regulation, communication, and conflict resolution into daily school life to build mental resilience. 
5. Promote volunteering and other forms of civic engagement. Both parents and educators can help youth find age-appropriate ways to engage in healthy social activities that allow them to gain new skills and make positive community contributions. 
6. Normalize mental health check-ins at home and at school. Parents, teachers, coaches, and mentors should regularly ask “How are you doing, really?” to help normalize open conversations about their challenges and emotions. 
7. Restricted cell phone use during the school day – At a minimum, restrict cell phone use during class. Provide safe places to store cell phones and create cell phone free zones to promote positive peer interactions. 
8. Enforce healthy sleep patterns and limit electronic device use at home. Easier said than done, but essential to better health for our youth.  

It is Time to Do What We Can Now 

We do not need to wait for more studies or more funding to begin improving the health of America’s children. The health crisis is already here, and so are many solutions. What we lack is not evidence and funding, but the resolve to act on what we already know. By taking immediate, low-cost, high-impact actions in places where children spend most of their time, we can begin to reverse harmful trends and restore a foundation for lifelong health for our youth and generations to come.