Global Decline in Youth Mental Health

A health care summit at Dartmouth College, October 26-28, 2025, brought together some of the country’s most prominent physicians to focus on the growing crisis of youth mental health.

In partnership with the United Nations Development Program, six former U.S. surgeons general who served under Presidents H.W. Bush to Joe Biden addressed mental health among kids with some startling statistics.

“One out of five have thought about suicide. Sixteen percent have made a plan. And 9% have accomplished it,” said former Surgeon General Dr. Antonia Novello.

Each was asked what is contributing to the growing crisis among kids. Common themes include not enough sleep, loneliness, the increasing potency of cannabis use, and ever-present social media.

“And I didn’t bring that TV to bed with me, the gym with me, to school with me. It didn’t buzz with new headlines that were designed to stoke anxiety and fear,” said former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy.

The group was also asked what could be done about it. Building relationships and community were at the top of the list.

“We do a lot of talking at them, but sometimes we don’t communicate with them,” said former Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders.

Dartmouth College President Sian Beilock has made mental wellness a priority since arriving on campus in 2023 with her Commitment to Care initiative. The experts say breaking down stigmas continues to be a challenge.

“How can we focus more on mental health and wellness and not just mental illness and diagnosis,” said former Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams.

Kit Payson, a junior at Thetford Academy, sat in on the panel discussion with some classmates.

“Every day I hear about awful news and my dad talking about what’s going wrong with the world,” Payson said. “How cannabis affects the brain and screen time.”

The three-day symposium continued Tuesday with a keynote address entitled “What Makes a Satisfying Life?”

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Published: Oct. 27, 2025 at 3:25 PM EDT| Updated: Oct. 27, 2025 at 4:45 PM EDT

First Announced in: https://home.dartmouth.edu/events/global-turning-point-why-youth-well-being-crisis-and-what-we-must-do-about-it

https://vimeo.com/1131462565?fl=pl&fe=vl has free videos of the meeting

Additional information and full program schedule available at http://dartgo.org/well-beingsymposium

New FREE Film: An Inconvenient Study

The film “An Inconvenient Study” is now available for free screening on your computer/TV. It also tells the story of the stresses put on youth and may explain one component of the problem https://www.aninconvenientstudy.com/ One hour and 20 minutes.

Please know: the opinions expressed in the film are those of the producers. IMHU does not take a political or ideological stand. We stand for looking at all sides of a problem—from as many reasonable perspectives as possible. We believe there is much to be said for scientific method when it is done thoroughly. We also know that other dynamics come to play in all events—and some cannot be measured with the 5 senses or technologies we have.

It just won an award, Best of Film Festival, at the Malibu Film Festival.

It’s about the health of our kids.

Become a screening partner and help them reach more people with the truth. They are looking for venues across the country. Click below or email them at [email protected]