Anxiety and depression in children increased steadily from 2016 to 2022

The percentage of children under 18 years old with anxiety and depression increased steadily from 2016 to 2022, according to publicly available data from the National Survey of Children's Health that were analyzed by researchers from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago. In contrast, there was no increase during that timeframe related to physical health problems, such as asthma, severe headache or migraine, and heart conditions. Results were published in JAMA Pediatrics.

"Our findings underscore the critical need to prioritize youth mental health, which continued to worsen even as we emerged from the pandemic," said lead author Marie Heffernan, PhD, Scientific Director for Quantitative Science at Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research, and Evaluation Center Catalyst Program at Lurie Children's and Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

"Parents and schools need more support to be better equipped to help children suffering from anxiety or depression," she said.

The study found that the proportion of children with anxiety jumped from 7.1 percent in 2016 to 10.6 percent in 2022 (the most recent year of publicly available data). Depression increased from 3.2 percent to 4.6 percent in the same period. ADD/ADHD increased but did not reach statistical significance, while behavioral or conduct problems remained at about the same percentage.

The data revealed the opposite trajectory for the selected physical health problems. Asthma declined from 8.4 percent to 6.5 percent, and severe headaches or migraines went down from 3.5 percent to 2.6 percent. The percentage of children with heart conditions did not change over the study period.

"Continued attention and resources are warranted at a national level to clarify and address the multitude of potential causes of worsening anxiety and depression in children and adolescents," said senior author Michelle Macy, MD, MS, Emergency Medicine physician and Director of Smith Child Health Outcomes, Research and Evaluation Center at Lurie Children's, and Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Dr. Macy holds the Mary Ann and J. Milburn Smith Research Professorship for the Director of Child Health Research at Lurie Children's.