'From bad to worse': Mental health declining among youth since 2019: Stat Can

Alarming decline in youth mental health reported Statistics Canada data show compared to 2019, youth say their mental health is waning, and experts say it's only getting worse.

New data released by Statistics Canada compared the same youth in 2019 and 2023 and noted the differences in their overall health, including declines in their mental health.

The Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth (CHSCY) surveyed 22,739 youth, who it surveyed in 2019, which is 54 per cent of respondents from the four years prior.

It found that in Alberta, the perceived mental health being excellent or very good, was around 32 per cent among respondents. Overall health for Alberta youth, was around 55 per cent.

Nationally, about one in five youth who felt their mental health was "good" or better in 2019 no longer feel that way in 2023.

"What we're seeing is continued decline in the mental and physical health of children and their overall outcomes," said Sara Austin, founder and CEO of Children First Canada Sara Austin.

"We've gone from bad to worse."

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted students' ability to learn and socialize with friends, which mental health advocates say plays a large factor in these numbers.

Child poverty, social media and access to education are also proving to be major challenges youth face.

"We're seeing that in more concrete ways, particularly for girls and for teens," said Austin.

"It's also impacting them (in) a myriad of other ways. Physical symptoms like more headaches, stomach aches, back aches and other issues around lack of sleep and lack of physical activity."

Austin adds that parents and governments need to tackle this mental health crisis for youth before things get worse.

"If we're seeing warning signs that our child's behaviour or they're verbalizing that they need help, to seek that help as quickly as possible," said Austin.

"Because we know early intervention makes a really big difference in helping our kids survive."

A health statistics analyst with Statistics Canada says the numbers are troubling.

"Declines were more common when we looked at older age groups versus younger age groups," said Eton Boco.

"And when we looked at it by gender, girls or teenage girls, in particular, were more likely to report declines."

The report states that in 2019, 16 per cent of girls aged 12 to 17 rated their mental health as "fair" or "poor" – more than twice that of boys at seven per cent. The proportions increased in 2023 to 33 per cent for girls 16 to 21 years and 19 per cent for boys (from 16 to 21 years).

Compared with boys, girls were more likely to experience declines in their self-rated mental health across the follow-up period.

Among boys and girls who reported "good,” "very good,” or "excellent" mental health in 2019, 26 per cent of girls reported their mental health was "fair" or "poor" in 2023, compared with 17 per cent of boys.

"Declines were more common when we looked at older age groups versus younger age groups," said Eton Boco, an analyst with Statistics Canada.

"When we looked at it by gender, girls or teenage girls, in particular, were more likely to report declines than teenage boys."

The full report can be found here.