Background: To examine the associations between adolescent pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes on substance use and suicide attempts in a sample who is at greater risk for substance use and suicide attempts -- those who have been involved with the juvenile justice and child welfare systems. Methods: Using a prospective, longitudinal design, we…

Each year, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) releases a list of scientific advances that represent significant progress in the field. The "2019 IACC Summary of Advances" provides short, plain language summaries of the top research breakthroughs selected by the IACC from a pool of research articles nominated by the…

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. Population-based data on these behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth nationwide. Reporting…

Objective: Little is known about the magnitude and consequences of violence against children for those living outside family care. We sought to estimate the frequency of childhood abuse and examine its association with lifetime pregnancy involvement (LPI) and past year suicide ideation among orphaned youth. Methods: We analyzed data collected via…

This study explores associations of IQ at age 14 with adult symptoms of suicidal thoughts and attempts at age 21. Analysis was based on the Mater University Study of Pregnancy and its outcomes, an Australian prospective birth cohort study started in Brisbane Australia in 1981. We assessed associations with suicide thoughts, plans, and attempts. We…

As young people transition through childhood to adolescence, they often face developmental challenges that can impede their quest to become flourishing, healthy adults. While both males and females experience difficulties, there are certain risk factors to which males are more susceptible. Compared with females, males tend to be more likely to…

Background: This study examined the prevalence of oral sexual activity in rural Midwestern adolescents. We also examined the correlates of a series of risk behaviors with oral sexual activity. Methods: A questionnaire based on the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System was distributed to 2121 rural middle and high school students in grades 6-12…

American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) adolescents have high rates of pregnancy, as well as alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, and, increasingly, methamphetamine (meth) use. The progression of adolescent drug use to meth use could have devastating impacts on AI communities, particularly when youth are simultaneously at risk for teen childbearing. In…

This state-of-the-art practitioner resource and course text provides a comprehensive view of adolescent development and spells out effective ways to help teens who are having difficulties. The book illuminates protective and risk factors in the many contexts of adolescents' lives, from individual attributes to family, school, neighborhood, and…

"Kids Count in Colorado!" is an annual publication of the Colorado Children's Campaign, which provides the best available state- and county-level data to measure and track the education, health and general well-being of the state's children. "Kids Count in Colorado!" informs policy debates and community discussions, serving as…

This document consists of Part 3 of a book of readings on at-risk youth designed to provide information and strategies for counselors, teachers, parents, administrators, social workers, and others who work with youth at risk. It includes six readings, each dealing with a specific behavior that places a young person at risk. "The Secret and…

This report presents data on the current status of adolescent health. Many of the measures of health status are shown by single year of age or by 2- or 3-year age intervals to highlight the changes that occur in health status as adolescents move through this important developmental period. Summary measures combining 5- or 10-year age groups (the…

In the fall of 2005, the New Mexico Youth Risk and Resiliency Survey (NM YRRS) was conducted in New Mexico public high schools, with 5,679 students in grades nine through twelve participating from 20 public high schools in the state. The NM YRRS is a tool that can assist administrators and policy makers in identifying health risk behaviors among…

In the United States, nearly two-thirds of all deaths among young people 10-14 years of age result from only five causes: motor-vehicle crashes (22.1%), other unintentional injuries (16.7%), cancer (12.9%), suicide (6.8%), and homicide (4.7%). Leading causes of illness and death in all age groups in the United States are related to the following:…

This report presents results of the 1991 Wyoming Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) and the 1991 Wyoming School Health Education Survey (SHES). Thirty-five schools participated in the YRBS, with 3,513 students in grades 9-12; 92 public schools with students in grades 7-12 participated in the SHES. Statistical data from the YRBS are provided in the…