Young Americans dying more and more per the most recent data from the KIDS COUNT® Data Center. It shows that the overall teen death rate is on the rise, following decades of decline. The reality is many young people are losing their lives from preventable causes every day, including homicides, accidents, and suicides.
“The overall teen death rate steadily increasing from 2014 to 2017 and then sharply spiking in 2020, from 49 deaths per 100,000 teens in 2019 to 59 per 100,000. This spike meant 12,278 young lives lost in 2020 compared to 10,258 in 2019. Certain states had particularly high teen death rates in 2020, including Louisiana with 97 per 100,000, Alaska with 96 per 100,000 and Arkansas with 88 per 100,000.” – KIDS COUNT® Data Center
A sharp increase in deaths of young Americans aged 10 to 19 years old have experts sounding the alarm bell. In 2016, the latest year for which the data was analyzed, the death rate for youths in the United States stacked up like this:
According to a review of the data from 1999 through 2016 from the National Center for Health Statistics at the CDC:
A recent study released by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) buttressed the findings of the CDC study that the leading causes of death among young Americans between the ages of 15 and 34 years old were unintentional injuries, most notably motor vehicle accidents, poisoning and drowning; suicide; and homicide.
There are several reasons why young Americans are dying in increasing numbers. One of the main reasons is the opioid epidemic, which has led to a significant increase in overdose deaths among young people. Other contributing factors include suicide, which has been on the rise in recent years, and accidents, such as car crashes. Additionally, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has also led to an increase in deaths among young people. It is important to note that these issues often intersect, with mental health problems, poverty, and lack of access to healthcare also playing a role in the increase in deaths among young Americans.
Dr. David Katz, founding director of the Yale University Prevention Research Center, referred to a ‘confluence of trends’ that he sees negatively affecting the lives of children in the United States and causing the increased death rates. Dr. Katz said, ‘Recent studies highlight the rising prevalence of both depression and opioid abuse in the U. S. Combine these with yet another feature of American life ‘the ubiquity of guns’ and there is a potent and ominous mix.’
Other experts, such as Dr. Tina Cheng, John Hopkins Medicine director of the Department of Pediatrics, point out that ‘[s]ome have suggested that social media and cyberbullying may be contributing. Others have pointed to growing income inequality.’
Motor vehicle accident deaths also include deaths from distracted driving and distracted walking involving smartphones. Researchers also noted that a large number of young people killed in traffic accidents were found not to be wearing seat belts at the time of their fatal crash, 50% of those aged 15 to 19 years old, and 43% of children aged 9 to 13.
The opioid crisis is also heavily contributing to the increase in deaths of young Americans just as it is affecting other communities throughout the country. Drug overdoses are included in the ‘poisoning’ category and account for 90% of the recorded poisoning deaths among youths.
And, most shockingly, more young Americans are dying of heart failure than ever before. Dr. Nilay Shah, assistant professor of cardiology at Northwestern University, says that health conditions like obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure are the most obvious contributors, but socioeconomic status is the source of the cause. Lack of education, job opportunities, local access to healthy food, dental coverage, and whether they have safe places to exercise all affect heart health.
This trend highlights the need for continued efforts to address the underlying causes of these deaths, such as the opioid epidemic, mental health issues, and lack of access to healthcare. It also emphasizes the importance of addressing social determinants of health, such as poverty and inequality, which can contribute to poor health outcomes.
Preventive measures such as providing education on opioid use, and implementing harm reduction strategies, improving access to mental health services, providing education on safe driving and making sure that healthcare is accessible and affordable for all Americans are some of the ways that can help reduce the number of deaths among young people.
Experts agree our nation’s youth are crying for help, and attention and prevention services are key to reversing these alarming numbers. Dr. Thomas Weiser, an associate professor of surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine and a trauma surgeon at Stanford University Medical Center, urged, ‘This disturbing trend should be a wake-up call that mental health services, injury prevention, gun safety and ongoing efforts to improve car and driver safety need support, attention, and financial resources.’
Here are a few of the ways we can dedicate our time, talents, and resources to help reverse this fatal trend:
The future of our country is at stake, and it’s up to all of us to answer the cry for help from our nation’s youth.