The United States is facing a child mental health crisis, and Montana is no exception. Untreated or undertreated child and adolescent emotional-behavioral problems often lead to psychiatric disorders in adults, representing a significant public health problem. In fact, mental illness is the No. 1 cause of disability in the U.S. and in Canada, according to the World Health Organization.
By the time our youth turn 19 years old, about 50 percent will have experienced a treatable emotional-behavioral problem. This doesn’t mean that half of our kids need to be medicated — it simply means that a significant proportion of our children and adolescents are at risk for further problems in functioning if untreated.
According to the 2013 Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey, about 1 in 13 high school students attempted suicide last school year. Based on national statistics, 80 percent of youth who struggle with mental illness go untreated. Interestingly, 75 percent of youth who are able to access treatment do so in a school setting. The number may be even higher in Montana thanks to the Comprehensive School and Community Treatment teams that are present in more than a third of public schools.
We’ve known for decades that genes and the environment interact to either protect us from or make us vulnerable to disease. Fortunately, recent powerful public health studies are yielding data that help us to better understand the conditions in childhood that can make the development of emotional-behavioral problems more likely.
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