A new study from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that 40% of LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to have mental health issues and to consider suicide and 65% suffer from poor mental health of some kind.
The study, titled the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, was published on August 6 and displays upsetting results about queer youth—not only are they more susceptible to poor mental health conditions and suicidal ideation, but they’re also more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol and be victims of violence. More specifically, three in five queer kids, or 65%, suffer from poor mental health; this is in sharp contrast to the 31% of their straight peers. One in five queer students have attempted suicide in the past year, and 41% have seriously thought about it. Almost three in 10 LGBTQ+ students reported being bullied, and almost two in 10 skipped school due to potential hazards to their health and safety. Additionally, queer youth are about twice as likely to use and misuse drugs and alcohol, including prescription drugs/opiates.
The study took place throughout the course of 2023, surveying youth between 9th and 12th grade, across public and private schools alike. It was groundbreaking in terms of surveys of this type—In addition to lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning, and other non-heterosexual identities, it was the first time that transgender youth were counted for in a study like this one.
Dr. Kathleen Ethier, the director of the CDC’s adolescent and school health division, said that the not only are the results of LGBTQ+ kids significantly disparate from their straight peers, but that this has “been the case for a while.” It was acknowledged that schools have put in programs to target mental health, bullying, and drug use issues in their schools, and that it does help to decrease the rate of both straight and queer students struggling with these issues. Ethier says that if schools continue to focus on assisting young LGBTQ+ people, this troubling outlook on the future of queer kids can be brightened.
OFM has compiled a list of mental health resources that are safe for queer folks located in the Colorado area—Please don’t hesitate to reach out to these places if you’re struggling.
