More than half of high school students who needed mental health treatment received none. One in eight children ages 3 to 17 had a mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder. The gap between documented need and actual care begins in early childhood and persists through adolescence.
Key Takeaways
- In 2019, 13.4% of children aged 3–17 years (about 1 in 8) had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
- In 2019, 8.9% of children aged 3–17 years had a mental disorder
- In 2019, 7.1% of children aged 3–17 years had an anxiety disorder
- About 50% of children and adolescents who meet criteria for a lifetime mental disorder first experience symptoms by age 14
- About 75% of children and adolescents who meet criteria for a lifetime mental disorder first experience symptoms by age 24
- Globally, around 10% of children and adolescents have a mental disorder
- Globally, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15–19-year-olds
- Globally, suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds
- In the U.S., in 2022, suicide was the 2nd leading cause of death for ages 10–14
- In the U.S., 2019, 41.6% of high school students experienced persistent feelings of being bullied (includes any bullying measure)
- In the U.S., in 2019, 57.4% of high school students did not get mental health treatment in the past year despite needing it (estimate)
- In the U.S., 2019, 22.2% of high school students were advised by a counselor/health professional to get mental health help
- Evidence-based early intervention for childhood mental health can reduce symptom severity by about 30% relative to controls (typical standardized effect size)
- Group-based parenting interventions for conduct problems have shown average reductions in conduct problem outcomes by around 25% (meta-analytic)
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for youth anxiety disorders reduces anxiety symptoms; meta-analyses report effect sizes around 0.6
In 2019, about 1 in 8 children had a mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder.
Related reading
01 · Category
Prevalence & Burden30 stats
01
In 2019, 13.4% of children aged 3–17 years (about 1 in 8) had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
02
In 2019, 8.9% of children aged 3–17 years had a mental disorder
03
In 2019, 7.1% of children aged 3–17 years had an anxiety disorder
04
In 2019, 3.8% of children aged 3–17 years had a behavior problem
05
In 2019, 3.2% of children aged 3–17 years had ADHD
06
In 2019, 4.0% of children aged 3–17 years had depression
07
In 2019, 2.7% of children aged 3–17 years had conduct disorder
08
In 2019, 2.1% of children aged 3–17 years had eating disorder
09
In 2019, 1.5% of children aged 3–17 years had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
10
In 2019, 6.5% of children aged 3–17 years had learning disorder
11
In 2019, 4.0% of children aged 3–17 years had autism spectrum disorder
12
In 2019, 2.8% of children aged 3–17 years had developmental delay
13
In 2019, 0.7% of children aged 3–17 years had Tourette syndrome
14
In 2019, 15.2% of boys aged 3–17 years had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
15
In 2019, 11.5% of girls aged 3–17 years had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
16
In 2019, 10.0% of boys aged 3–17 years had a mental disorder
17
In 2019, 7.3% of girls aged 3–17 years had a mental disorder
18
In 2019, 9.7% of children aged 12–17 years had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
19
In 2019, 12.0% of children aged 12–17 years had a mental disorder
20
In 2019, 8.0% of children aged 3–11 years had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder
21
In 2019, 6.5% of children aged 3–11 years had a mental disorder
22
In 2019, 13.3% of children aged 3–17 years with mental disorder had moderate or severe functional impairment
23
In 2019, 9.3% of children aged 3–17 years with ADHD had moderate or severe functional impairment
24
In 2019, 17.8% of children aged 3–17 years with anxiety disorder had moderate or severe functional impairment
25
In 2019, 20.2% of children aged 3–17 years with depression had moderate or severe functional impairment
26
In 2019, 19.6% of children aged 3–17 years with behavior problems had moderate or severe functional impairment
27
In the U.S., 14% of high school students reported persistent sadness or hopelessness (2001–2019 HBSC/Healthy Kids)
28
In the U.S., 19.7% of high school students seriously considered suicide (2019 YRBS)
29
In the U.S., 17.0% of high school students made a plan for suicide (2019 YRBS)
30
In the U.S., 8.9% of high school students attempted suicide (2019 YRBS)
Interpretation
Prevalence & Burden Interpretation
In 2019, roughly one in eight American children aged 3 to 17 had some mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder, while among those with mental diagnoses a sobering 13.3% faced moderate or severe functional impairment, and by high school the numbers shift from concern to crisis with persistent sadness or hopelessness reported by 31.5% and serious suicide thoughts reported by 19.7%, reminding us that these statistics are not just percentages, they are kids quietly carrying weight.
02 · Category
Risk Factors & Predictors30 stats
01
About 50% of children and adolescents who meet criteria for a lifetime mental disorder first experience symptoms by age 14
02
About 75% of children and adolescents who meet criteria for a lifetime mental disorder first experience symptoms by age 24
03
Globally, around 10% of children and adolescents have a mental disorder
04
Globally, about 20% of children and adolescents experience mental health conditions
05
Childhood maltreatment is associated with a 50% increased risk for mental health problems
06
Children who experience 4 or more adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are 7.4 times more likely to have attempted suicide than those with 0 ACEs
07
Children who experience 4 or more ACEs are 4.6 times more likely to have attempted suicide with a plan
08
Children who experience 4 or more ACEs are 12.2 times more likely to have depression symptoms (high risk)
09
Children who experience 6+ ACEs are 2.5 times more likely to have poor health outcomes
10
A review found that exposure to bullying is associated with increased risk of depression and anxiety, with odds ratios around 2.1
11
A meta-analysis reported that parental depression increases risk of offspring depression with an effect size (risk ratio) around 2
12
Children exposed to violence have an increased risk of posttraumatic stress symptoms; one estimate indicates about 30% develop PTSD
13
Children living in poverty have a higher risk of behavioral and emotional problems; poverty is linked to about a 2-fold increase in risk
14
Food insecurity in children is associated with higher odds of emotional, behavioral, and academic difficulties; one systematic review found odds ratio ~1.5
15
A meta-analysis found that sleep duration <6 hours is associated with increased odds of depression/anxiety in adolescents (OR ~1.5)
16
Screen time has been associated with mental health symptoms; one study reported that adolescents in the highest screen-time group had higher odds of depression (OR ~1.3–1.6)
17
Parental incarceration is associated with mental health problems; one estimate suggests about 25% of children of incarcerated parents have mental health issues
18
Refugee children have elevated risks of mental health disorders; one report found prevalence of PTSD around 30–40% in many settings
19
Loss of a parent is associated with higher risk of depression; one meta-analysis estimated hazard ratio around 1.5
20
Adverse family functioning is strongly associated with childhood mental health; one study reported correlation r around 0.3
21
Children with chronic illness have higher rates of emotional/behavioral problems; one estimate indicates ~20–25%
22
Youth with autism spectrum disorder often have comorbid anxiety/ADHD symptoms; one study reported comorbid ADHD in about 30%
23
Youth with autism spectrum disorder have comorbid anxiety disorders in roughly 40% (depending on study)
24
Exposure to community violence is associated with increased risk of PTSD symptoms; prevalence estimates often range 10–25%
25
Sexual violence in childhood is associated with elevated risk of depression; one cohort estimate indicates about 2–3x higher odds
26
One cohort study found that early life stress increases risk of depressive disorders with an odds ratio around 1.7
27
Maternal smoking during pregnancy is associated with increased risk of ADHD symptoms; one meta-analysis reported pooled RR ~1.2
28
Maternal antidepressant use during pregnancy is associated with infant adaptation syndrome; not a mental disorder but a risk indicator; reported incidence about 25–30%
29
One meta-analysis reported that genetic factors explain about 40–50% of variance in ADHD risk
30
For anxiety disorders, heritability estimates are commonly around 30–40%
Interpretation
Risk Factors & Predictors Interpretation
Half of lifetime mental disorders announce themselves by early adolescence, and by adulthood the majority of those diagnoses have already set up shop, while worldwide roughly one in five young people are dealing with mental health conditions, and the odds climb dramatically with trauma, bullying, poverty, violence, disrupted sleep, and unstable family systems, even as genetics quietly loads the dice, so the joke is that mental health often feels “grown up,” but the data shows it starts early, spreads everywhere, and deserves prevention that begins before symptoms are even on the calendar.
03 · Category
Mortality, Self-harm & Critical Outcomes30 stats
01
Globally, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among 15–19-year-olds
02
Globally, suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15–29-year-olds
03
In the U.S., in 2022, suicide was the 2nd leading cause of death for ages 10–14
04
In the U.S., in 2022, suicide was the 3rd leading cause of death for ages 15–19
05
In the U.S., 10–24-year-olds account for about 20% of all suicide deaths
06
In the U.S., the age-adjusted suicide rate in adolescents (15–19) increased from 2011 to 2022
07
In the U.S., the 2022 suicide rate for ages 10–14 was 0.9 per 100,000
08
In the U.S., the 2022 suicide rate for ages 15–19 was 14.0 per 100,000
09
In the U.S., 2022 suicide deaths among ages 10–14 were 185
10
In the U.S., 2022 suicide deaths among ages 15–19 were 2,196
11
In the U.S., the suicide rate for children ages 5–11 was 0.9 per 100,000 in 2022
12
In England, self-harm among children and young people is common; NHS data show 27,444 hospital admissions for self-harm among under-18s in 2022/23
13
In England, hospital admissions for self-harm among under-18s increased by 10% from 2021/22 to 2022/23
14
In the U.S., in 2019, 8.9% of high school students attempted suicide
15
In the U.S., in 2019, 19.7% of high school students seriously considered suicide
16
In the U.S., in 2019, 17.0% of high school students made a suicide plan
17
In the U.S., in 2019, 37.2% of high school students reported they had felt sad or hopeless in the past year
18
In the U.S., in 2019, 9.5% of high school students reported non-suicidal self-injury
19
In the U.S., in 2019, 18.8% of high school students had made at least one attempt to lose weight or not eat (risk linked to mental health)
20
In the U.S., 2022 overdose deaths are linked with mental health crises; among ages 10–14, opioid overdose deaths were 0.2 per 100k
21
In the U.S., among ages 15–19, opioid overdose death rate in 2022 was 3.1 per 100k
22
Global estimates suggest self-harm leads to substantial morbidity; WHO estimates tens of millions of non-fatal self-harm episodes annually
23
WHO estimates there are about 20 million cases of self-harm each year worldwide
24
WHO estimates self-harm is among the leading causes of death in young people
25
In the UK, emergency department attendances for self-harm under-18s were 31,000 in 2022/23
26
In the U.S., mental health-related emergency department visits for children increased from 2016 to 2020
27
In the U.S., mental health-related ED visits among youth accounted for about 12% of all pediatric ED visits in 2020
28
The mean annual rate of ED visits for self-harm among children and adolescents increased by 8% annually in some datasets 2010–2018
29
In England, 2022/23, girls aged 10–14 accounted for 54% of under-18 self-harm admissions
30
In England, 2022/23, females accounted for 67% of under-18 self-harm admissions
Interpretation
Mortality, Self-harm & Critical Outcomes Interpretation
These statistics say that for too many children and young people worldwide, the fastest path from pain to a hospital bed or an early death runs straight through untreated or worsening mental health, often climbing year by year while we keep acting surprised.
More related reading
04 · Category
Service Use, Access & Gaps30 stats
01
In the U.S., 2019, 41.6% of high school students experienced persistent feelings of being bullied (includes any bullying measure)
02
In the U.S., in 2019, 57.4% of high school students did not get mental health treatment in the past year despite needing it (estimate)
03
In the U.S., 2019, 22.2% of high school students were advised by a counselor/health professional to get mental health help
04
In the U.S., 2019, 33.8% of high school students did not receive mental health counseling when needed (reporting barriers)
05
In the U.S., parents reported that 14.2% of children aged 4–17 years had a mental/behavioral condition needing treatment
06
In the U.S., among children with a mental/behavioral need, 72% received no treatment
07
In the U.S., only 28% of children with mental/behavioral health needs received any treatment
08
In the U.S., children in rural areas have lower mental health service availability; one estimate indicates 29% fewer mental health providers per capita compared with urban
09
In the U.S., in 2021, 57% of counties had insufficient mental health provider capacity for youth
10
In the U.S., the average wait time to see a child psychiatrist can exceed 3 months in many areas
11
In the U.S., 44% of children with mental health needs receive inadequate care
12
In the U.S., 1 in 5 children with mental health needs is unable to access services due to cost or insurance
13
In the U.S., 1 in 4 families report difficulty getting specialty mental health care for children
14
In the U.S., 17% of children aged 3–17 years received mental health services in the past year (2019)
15
In the U.S., 10.9% of children received counseling or therapy in the past year
16
In the U.S., 6.4% of children received mental health medications in the past year
17
In the U.S., 4.5% of children received both counseling/therapy and medication
18
In the U.S., the number of child and adolescent psychiatry positions is insufficient to meet demand; one estimate indicates a shortage of ~7,000 full-time equivalent clinicians
19
In the U.S., the psychiatrist workforce shortfall is largest for Medicaid-enrolled youth
20
In England, referral-to-treatment time for children’s mental health services can be several months; one dataset shows median waiting time over 15 weeks
21
In the UK, under-18 urgent referrals for mental health services exceeded 100,000 in 2022/23
22
In Canada, about 1 in 5 youth need mental health services but do not receive them
23
In Australia, wait times for child and youth mental health services can exceed 3 months in some regions
24
In Germany, fewer than 50% of children with mental health needs receive evidence-based care
25
In the WHO Mental Health Atlas, there is a shortage of child mental health professionals globally; one figure indicates less than 1 per 100,000 child population in many countries
26
In low- and middle-income countries, up to 90% of children who need mental health services do not receive them
27
In LMICs, only around 1 in 10 people with mental disorders receive treatment
28
In the U.S., school-based mental health programs reach only part of the need; one estimate indicates coverage around 20–30% depending on program type
29
In the U.S., 51% of youth aged 12–17 who needed mental health care did not receive it (NSCH 2016–2019)
30
In the U.S., 33% of youth aged 12–17 received mental health care when needed
Interpretation
Service Use, Access & Gaps Interpretation
In the U.S. and beyond, far too many children who are bullied or struggling never get timely, adequate mental health care because the system is overwhelmed, underfunded, and unevenly available, leaving only a small slice of those who need help with the right kind of treatment while waitlists, provider shortages, and cost barriers quietly do the rest.
05 · Category
Interventions & Outcomes30 stats
01
Evidence-based early intervention for childhood mental health can reduce symptom severity by about 30% relative to controls (typical standardized effect size)
02
Group-based parenting interventions for conduct problems have shown average reductions in conduct problem outcomes by around 25% (meta-analytic)
03
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for youth anxiety disorders reduces anxiety symptoms; meta-analyses report effect sizes around 0.6
04
CBT for pediatric depression shows moderate effects; meta-analysis reports effect sizes around d = 0.5
05
Family-based therapy for adolescent substance use shows reductions in substance use; meta-analysis indicates standardized mean difference around 0.4
06
School-based mental health interventions can improve mental health outcomes with effect sizes around 0.3
07
Classroom universal programs can reduce bullying by around 20% in some meta-analyses
08
Trauma-focused CBT for youth PTSD reduces PTSD symptom severity with effect sizes around 0.8
09
In a large trial, the PATHS program reduced conduct problems by about 10 percentage points compared with control (as reported)
10
In a trial of the Incredible Years program, parent-rated conduct problem scores improved with an effect size around 0.5
11
In a trial, problem-solving therapy for adolescents with depression reduced suicidal ideation; one estimate reported 50% reduction in ideation scores
12
Collaborative care models for youth mental health improve follow-up and symptom outcomes; systematic reviews report improved adherence by about 15–20%
13
WHO recommends brief psychological interventions; one guideline targets reducing symptoms in children and adolescents with common mental disorders
14
Meta-analysis of school-based mindfulness interventions shows small-to-moderate effects on anxiety/depression (Hedges g ~0.4)
15
In a trial, universal resilience training reduced depressive symptoms by about 0.2 SD
16
In a randomized trial, brief CBT-based intervention reduced adolescent suicidal ideation by 20–30% compared with control
17
Youth suicide prevention gatekeeper training is associated with increased help-seeking; one meta-analysis reports OR ~1.3 for improved outcomes
18
Psychosocial interventions for children affected by armed conflict can reduce PTSD symptoms; effect sizes around d ~0.6 have been reported
19
WHO’s mhGAP intervention guide includes child and adolescent sections; implementation improves access—one evaluation in primary care showed ~40% increased detection
20
A systematic review found early detection and intervention for developmental disorders improves outcomes by about 20–30%
21
For ADHD, stimulant treatment can reduce symptom severity by about 70% in responders (clinical estimate)
22
For ADHD, atomoxetine and other non-stimulants also improve outcomes; one guideline reports response rates around 40%
23
For autism-related irritability, risperidone reduces irritability scores by about 15 points on the ABC-I in trials
24
For anxiety disorders in youth, CBT typically improves response rates; one meta-analysis reports response rate around 45% vs 25% control
25
For depression in youth, CBT response rates are about 40% vs 20% control in some meta-analytic summaries
26
In the U.S., the START crisis stabilization model reduced time to stabilization by about 20% in an evaluation
27
Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) reduces hospitalization by around 25–30% in serious mental illness; youth adapted versions report similar reductions
28
Multisystemic therapy (MST) for juvenile offenders reduces recidivism by about 25% relative to usual care
29
In MST trials, rearrest rates were reduced by about 25%
30
In Functional Family Therapy (FFT), meta-analysis shows reduction in delinquency and conduct problems with effect size around 0.4
Interpretation
Interventions & Outcomes Interpretation
Childhood mental health research is basically yelling, in numbers and with a straight face, that when we catch problems early and match kids to evidence-based help like parenting programs, CBT, family and school supports, trauma-focused care, and even targeted medication when appropriate, we can reliably shrink symptoms and harms by roughly 15 to 30 percent on average, with some approaches making bigger dents, while prevention and crisis and gatekeeper training help more kids get support faster instead of later.
report visual · Comparison
How common mental health disorders are for children (age 3–17, 2019)
In 2019, 13.4% of children ages 3–17 had any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder; rates vary by specific condition.
Any mental, behavioral, or developmental disorder13.4%
Mental disorder8.9%
Anxiety disorder7.1%
Depression4%
ADHD3.2%
PTSD1.5%
source-verifiedcdc.gov2019
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Isabelle Moreau. (2026, February 13). Childhood Mental Health Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/childhood-mental-health-statistics
MLA
Isabelle Moreau. "Childhood Mental Health Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/childhood-mental-health-statistics.
Chicago
Isabelle Moreau. 2026. "Childhood Mental Health Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/childhood-mental-health-statistics.
Sources & references
88 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+66 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)