HJNO Jul/Aug 2025

MAHA REPORT 18  JUL / AUG 2025 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS   Samples. Nutrients, 13(10), 3390. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13103390. 46 Wang, L., Martínez Steele, E., Du, M., Pomeranz, J. L., O’Connor, L. E., Herrick, K. A., Luo, H., Zhang, X., & Mozaffarian, D. (2021). Trends in consumption of ultraprocessed foods among US youths aged 2–19 years, 1999–2018.JAMA, 326(6), 519– 530. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2021.10238. 47 Jouanne, K. M., Tinker, S. C., Vannucci, A., Chiu, C.-Y., & Bailey, R. L. (2022). Greater ultra-processed food intake during pregnancy and postpartum is associated with multiple aspects of lower diet quality. Nutrients, 14(20), 4290. 48 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2025, January 17). Now available: Latest update to the TSCA Inventory. https://www.epa.gov/chemicals-under-tsca/now- available-latest-update-tsca-inventory-7. 49 LaKind, J. S., Verner, M. A., Rogers, R. D., Goeden, H., Naiman, D. Q., Marchitti, S. A., ... & Fenton, S. E. (2022). Current breast milk PFAS levels in the United States and Canada: after all this time, why don’t we know more?. Environmental health perspectives, 130(2), 025002. 50 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2015). America’s children and the environment. https://www.epa.gov/americaschildrenenvironment. 51 Ospina, M., Wong, L. Y., Baker, S. E., Serafim, A. B., Morales-Agudelo, P., & Calafat, A. M. (2019). Exposure to neonicotinoid insecticides in the US general population: Data from the 2015–2016 national health and nutrition examination survey. Environmental research, 176, 108555. 52 Elcombe, C. S., Evans, Neil P. & and Bellingham, M. (2022) Critical review and analysis of literature on low dose exposure to chemical mixtures in mammalian in vivo American Youth face a Mental Health Crisis • Teenage depression rates nearly doubled from 2009 to 2019, with more than 1 in 4 teen- age girls in 2022 reporting a major depressive episode in the past year. 32 33 • Three million high school students seriously considered suicide in 2023. 34 • Suicide deaths among 10- to 24-year-olds increased by 62% from 2007 to 2021, and sui- cide is now the second leading cause of death in teens aged 15-19. 35 • The prevalence of diagnosed anxiety increased by 61% among adolescents between 2016 and 2023. 36 • Over 57% of girls report feelings of sadness and hopelessness, while suicidal ideation in teen girls has surged by 60% since 2010. 37 Allergies are Widespread, andAutoimmune Disorders are Rising • Today, over 1 in 4 American children suffers from allergies, including seasonal allergies, eczema, and food allergies. 38 • Eczema (atopic dermatitis) and skin allergies increased from 7.4% of children under 18 from 1997-1999 to 12.7% from 2016-2018. 39 • Between 1997 and 2018, childhood food-allergy prevalence rose 88%. 40 • Celiac disease rates have increased 5-fold in American children since the 1980s. 41 42 • Rates of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), including Crohn’s, have increased by 25% over the last decade. 43 In the 2021 Louisiana High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 29.6% of students reported experiencing poor mental health — defined as frequent stress, anxiety, or depression — most of the time or always during the 30 days before the survey. The percentage was significantly higher among female students (39.0%) compared to male students (19.4%). Source: https://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/app/ Results.aspx?TT=C&SID=HS&QID=H84&LID=LA& LID2=SL&YID=2021&YID2=SY&SYID=&EYID=&HT =QQ&LCT=LL&COL=S&ROW1=N&ROW2=N&TST =false&C1=&C2=&SC=DEFAULT&SO=ASC&VA=CI &CS=Y&DP=1&QP=G&FG=G1&FA=A1&FR=R1&FS= S1&FSC=P1&FSI=I1 State-specific death rates provided by CDC are not disaggregated for pediatric populations. Source: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/ sosmap/suicide-mortality/suicide.htm