Mental health disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and behavioral conditions, are common in school-aged children in the United States. Frontline treatments for mental health disorders can include medication, counseling or therapy, or both, depending on the condition and the age of the child. This report describes…

This report provides updated prevalence estimates for diagnosed autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, and other developmental delay among children 3-17 years from the 2019-2021 National Health Interview Survey, with differences in prevalence examined between years and by sex, age group, and race and Hispanic origin. Estimates are also…

The percentage of children with certain allergic conditions has increased over previous decades. Seasonal allergies, which includes hay fever, allergic rhinitis, and allergic conjunctivitis, causes sneezing, cough, runny nose, and itchy eyes. Eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis, causes itchy, bumpy rashes and thickened skin that can appear…

Food insecurity, which affects an estimated 15 million Americans is the limited or uncertain availability of safe and nutritionally adequate foods, or the limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways. Food insecurity has been consistently associated with poor health outcomes in children, including poorer…

Children with disabilities are at increased risk of experiencing stressful life events. These events include various forms of abuse, neglect, and household instability, such as exposure to violence, parental or guardian incarceration, and living with someone with mental illness or alcohol or drug problems. Stressful life events experienced in…

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends 9-12 hours of sleep for children aged 6-12 years and 8-10 hours for those aged 13-18, yet only two-thirds of children meet these recommendations. This report uses 2020 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) data to describe regular bedtimes, defined as going to sleep at the same time most days or…

Sports team participation has been associated with increased levels of physical activity and improved physical and mental health among children and adolescents. Disparities in sports participation have been found across age, sex, race, disability, and socioeconomic subgroups. This report describes national estimates of parent-reported organized…

Increasing the proportion of persons, including children, who are vaccinated annually against seasonal influenza is a Healthy People 2030 Leading Health Indicator. Vaccination is effective in preventing influenza. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends an annual influenza vaccination for children aged 6 months and over. This…

About 16.5% of school-aged children had been diagnosed with a mental health disorder in the United States in 2016. The most common mental health disorders among children include attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, and behavioral disorders. This report describes the percentage of U.S. children aged 5-17 years who have taken…

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disabilities are the most commonly diagnosed neurodevelopmental disorders in children and often coexist. Previous research has suggested that the prevalence of these conditions may differ by race and Hispanic origin. Using timely, nationally representative data, this report examines the…

Objective: This report examines the prevalence of developmental disabilities among children in both rural and urban areas as well as service utilization among children with developmental issues in both areas. Methods: Data from the 2015-2018 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) were used to examine the prevalence of 10 parent- or…

Maternal education has been shown to be associated with the number of children a woman has during her childbearing years, as well as maternal and infant health (1-5). Using 2017 national birth certificate data, this report describes educational attainment of mothers aged 25 and over, overall and by race and Hispanic origin and state, and the mean…

Objectives: This report describes associations between chronic school absenteeism and selected developmental disabilities (DDs) among school-aged children. Methods: Using the 2014-2016 National Health Interview Survey, multivariate logistic regression models were fit to estimate the association between DDs (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder…

Sugar-sweetened beverages contribute calories and added sugars to the diets of U.S. children. Studies have suggested a link between the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and dental caries, weight gain, type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in children. The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend…

Drug overdose deaths in the United States are a pressing public health challenge. In particular, drug overdoses involving opioids have increased since 1999. This report focuses specifically on drug overdose deaths for older adolescents aged 15-19. In 2015, 772 drug overdose deaths occurred in this age group. Rates for 1999-2015 are presented and…