Teen girls experiencing record levels of sadness, CDC data shows 

Teenage girls are experiencing record levels of sadness, according to a new report released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

“While all teens reported increasing mental health challenges, experiences of violence, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors, girls fared worse than boys across nearly all measures,” the CDC said. 

According to the data from the CDC’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey, three in five teen girls felt persistently sad or hopeless in 2021, a 60% increase when compared to the figures from a decade ago. 

Out of the teen girls that experienced persistent sadness, 30% said that they had considered suicide—a 60% increase compared to the same figures from 2011. 

Additionally, the data also shows that teenage girls are also experiencing increasing rates of sexual coercion in violence, an increase of 20% since 2017 when the CDC started monitoring the measure. About one in ten girls had been forced to perform sexual acts—up by 27% since 2019— and one in five said they had been victims of sexual violence last year. 

The report found teens who identify as LGBTQ+ reported worse mental health and more violence. Around one in five students who identify as LGBTQ+ attempted suicide. 

“Young people are experiencing a level of distress that calls on us to act with urgency and compassion,” said CDC Division of Adolescent and School Health Director Kathleen Ethier, Ph.D. “With the right programs and services in place, schools have the unique ability to help our youth flourish.”

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey polled 17,000 teenagers at high schools across the United States in 2021. The survey is conducted every two years.