Our YOUTH, Our FUTURE!
Hello LWA 2023 Seekers of Greater Well-BEing!
Dr. Sulak here for the weekly LWA 2023 Meaningful Mindful Moment – and the LWA Monthly Newsletter for APRIL. It’s fun writing about good news with uplifting data and discussing the latest science on how we can improve aspects of our lives. Unfortunately, when it comes to the well-being of our youth, the news is anything but good. You’ve probably seen the reports. Here are some FACTS:
- The top 3 killers of adolescents accounting for over 70% of all deaths: Accidents (including accidental drug overdoses), Suicide, and Murder.
- Mortality INCREASED 19% among our youth ages 1 to 19 between 2019 – 2021. These deaths were NOT due to COVID. They were due to injuries – accidental and self-inflicted.
- Among children and adolescents:
- Suicide has increased 70% in the last 20 years.
- Between 2019 – 2020, among children and adolescents:
- Murders increased 39%
- Drug overdoses increased 113% (NO, this is not a typo!)
The recently released CDC Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted in 2021 revealed worsening trends in teens’ emotional well-being, especially among girls, with 30% of high school female students surveyed reported having seriously considered attempting suicide. Data also showed 23.6% had made a suicide plan with 13.3% attempting suicide. These startling statistics are at an all-time high.
What’s causing these worsening trends? Are they just occurring among adolescents? NO!
Suicide rates are increasing in adults. In fact, what age group among females has the highest suicide rate? Teens? Young Adults? NO! The highest suicide rates are in women 45-65 years of age. What about the highest suicide rates among males? Teens? Young Adults? NO! The highest suicide rates are in males 45 years of age and older. And it’s not just suicide deaths on the rise. Accidental drug overdoses are at an all-time high, causing over 100,000 deaths annually in the U.S - - mostly in adults.
What about alcohol deaths? They are also increasing. It is estimated that more than 140,000 people (97,000 men and 43,000 women) die from alcohol-related causes annually, making alcohol the 4th leading preventable cause of death in the U.S. behind tobacco, poor diet / physical inactivity, and illegal drugs. Alcohol-attributable deaths include liver disease, cardiovascular diseases, several types of cancer including breast and colon, and accidents. What age group suffers the most from excess alcohol? ADULTS! 80% of alcohol-related deaths involved adults over age 35.
How can we improve the health and well-being of our youth? It starts with each of US! Kids need to see us at our best: physically, emotionally, socially, financially, and spiritually. We need to work on our own wellness. That’s what our newly released 6th, 7th, and 8th grade adolescent health and wellness curriculum is all about: Living WELL Aware: My Choices, My Life. This one-of-a-kind unique approach to adolescent health includes components for adults entrusted to care for our youth: parents/guardians and school employees. EVERY lesson comes with a video for school staff / caregivers and is accessible to all adults at livingwellaware.com under the Adolescent Wellness TAB. We will have healthier kids when we elevate the health of adults responsible for their care and learning.
Our youth need to see us working on our health. None of us are anywhere close to that amazing version we are capable of being. Living WELL Aware: My Choices, My Life allows students and the adults they encounter to travel the wellness journey together. Have your local school district check out our website and contact us!
THANKS to the many school districts throughout the state of Texas and beyond who have used previous editions of my adolescent health curricula (Scott & White Worth the Wait and BSWH Adolescent Wellness & Sexual Health). Many are now implementing my latest 8th Edition entitled Living WELL Aware: My Choices, My Lifeincluding Killeen ISD, Belton ISD, Troy ISD, Gatesville ISD, Connally ISD, Manor ISD, Taylor ISD, Boerne ISD, Cameron ISD, Lampasas ISD, Navasota ISD, Taylor ISD, and more to come in 2023-2024. The list keeps growing as more schools become aware of our easy to implement online curriculum which covers the newly released health TEKS including the critically important topics of drug abuse, violence, bullying, trafficking, digital dangers, sexual abuse, emotional difficulties, communication skills, healthy relationships, and much more.
For more information about Living WELL Aware: My Choices, My Life, contact us at info@livingwellaware.com and check out the info videos at livingwellaware.com under the Adolescent Wellness TAB. Let’s stop the epidemic of adolescent and adult health decline with doable strategies that work! We look forward to traveling the wellness journey with you! It’s all about Living WELL Aware for adolescents and adults!
LWA 2023 Webinar: #8 of 24 TUESDAY, May 2 at 6:30pm. Dr Sulak will discuss: INFLAMMATION: THE ROOT CAUSE OF DISEASE: Effective Strategies To Bring It Down. Dr. Waxman will continue our journey into MEDITATION. Have you started reading Tiny Habits by B J Fogg? We’ll begin our discussion in a couple of weeks.
LWA 2023 Yearlong Program: Registration is still open! Get on board. Recordings available for prior webinars. LINK TO REGISTRATION
ONWARD!
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
