Mental Health

What does climate change have to do with my child’s mental health?

As our climate changes, extreme weather events such as hurricanes, floods, and wildfires, may become more dangerous. During a natural disaster, families may have to leave their homes and belongings behind. They may have trouble getting food and clean water, or have to leave their home permanently. These stressful experiences may cause children to develop mental health problems like depression, anxiety, or PTSD.

For instance, one study following 400 young people (8-16 years old) directly affected by Hurricane Katrina found:

• A small number of youth had persistent PTSD symptoms 2 years after the hurricane
• About 25% of the youth suffered from PTSD but most symptoms had declined by the end of the study (2 years after the hurricane hit)

What experiences can lead to mental health issues? 

Adverse Childhood Events, or ACEs, are traumatic events that can lead to “toxic stress,” which can damage developing brains and bodies and have far-reaching health impacts. Some examples of adverse childhood events are:

• Physical abuse
• Neglect
• Parental mental illness
• Divorce
• Exposure to violence

Hurricanes, wildfires, and floods also can be ACEs, especially when a child directly witnesses the loss of their home, or these events result in the loss of a family member or friend. The more ACEs a child experiences, the higher their risk for many health problems later in life including everything from higher rates of substance use and unwanted pregnancies to cancer and HIV. ACEs can lead to social, emotional, and cognitive impairment as well as risk-taking behaviors that lead to chronic diseases throughout life. 

Research also shows that children who experience natural disasters while in the womb may be more likely to develop mental health disorders. For instance, one study following 163 preschool children found:

• Children who were exposed to Hurricane Sandy in the womb had three times higher risk of attention-deficit/disruptive behavioral disorders, five times higher risk of anxiety disorders, and 16 times higher risk of depressive disorders compared to children born before Sandy or who were conceived after the storm.

How can I promote resilience in my child?

If your child has lived through a natural disaster or has persistent worries about how climate change might impact them directly, you can help increase their resilience to toxic stress by:

• Maintaining your involvement in your child’s life. A supportive adult may be the single most important buffer against toxic stress for a child.
• Building resilience to adversity by promoting healthy risk-taking in a responsible way. For example, encouraging children to step out of their comfort zones and try new activities or meet new people can help build their self-confidence.
• Showing your child the value of persistence as you overcome an obstacle in life. When your child struggles with or fails at a task, talk with them about times when you have had a setback. Help your child understand that life comes with challenges and that persistence can help overcome them.

Communities can take actions to promote resilience to climate-related trauma by:

• Providing high-quality early education
• Reducing crime in their community
• Training teachers to care for students who have experienced trauma
• Creating more accessible and well-maintained parks and playgrounds
• Providing more green space, which is linked to improved well-being

You can learn more about building resilience to traumatic events and toxic stress from the American Psychological Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Center on the Developing Child.

How does our reliance on fossil fuels impact children’s mental health?

Natural disasters aren’t the only way that our reliance on fossil fuels can impact a child’s mental health. Burning fossil fuels (for example, from power plants, cars, and trucks) produces carbon pollution that drives climate change as well as other air pollutants, such as particulate matter or PM, that have been found to contribute to symptoms of depression and anxiety in children.

For example, one study found that children were more likely to visit the ER for mental health problems like anxiety and suicidal thoughts on days with higher levels of pollution. Children living in low-income communities or with less access to healthcare were more severely affected.

Also, higher temperatures, which are getting more common with climate change, have been associated in many studies to increase rates of suicide.

Lastly, many parents and children worry about their future, given many of the concerns raised about how climate change may affect our lives. For instance, climate change may cause:

• Increases in asthma and asthma attacks
• Worse allergy seasons
• Increases in heat-related illness
• Changes in developing brains
• Problems for pregnancies like low birth weight and preterm birth