The toll on the mental health of American young people during the enforced isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic is becoming more and more clear, and the results are both revealing and troubling, according to some studies.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released two reports about children’s health over the course of the pandemic: Pediatric emergency department visits before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S., January 2019–January 2022, and Pediatric emergency department visits associated with mental health conditions before and during the COVID-19 pandemic  in the U.S., January 2019–January 2022.

Although the total number of emergency room visits for children dropped during the pandemic, it is important to note that there were increases in ER visits related to mental health problems and self-harm.

The recent CDC report “Pediatric emergency department visits before and during the COVID-19 pandemic” reported that prolonged time at home might have amplified adversities and stressors. In addition, the report states that exposure to adverse childhood experiences might have been exacerbated by the pandemic and are associated with poor mental health outcomes among children and adolescents. It also noted that the pandemic disrupted social and physical activities.

Sarah Smith, one of the leaders for the New Mexico Freedoms Alliance and the National Coalition for Health Integrity, told New Mexico Sun that not being in school and around friends and classmates was highly challenging for some youngsters.

“Some New Mexico parents reported that their children suffered depression and even suicidal thoughts due to the COVID measures,” she said. “In some cases this has led to tragic outcomes, such as an 11-year-old New Mexican boy who killed himself as a result of school closures.”

Smith, a natural health care practitioner and former NASA aerospace engineer, said the two CDC reports make a convincing case. Among the facts presented were child ER visits for mental health problems were significantly increased in 2020 and 2021, as compared to 2019 and children are suffering increased levels of neurodevelopmental disorders, psychosocial problems, depression, anxiety, eating disorders and drug poisoning, Smith noted.

“There were increased numbers of ER visits related to mental health problems for all ages of children,” she said.

The CDC reports break down the challenge by age group.

In children ages zero to 4, the main increases were in ER visits for psychosocial problems (increased by 38-55 visits per week) and neurodevelopmental disorders (increased by 18-45 visits per week).

In children ages 5-11, the main increases were in psychosocial problems (increased by 38-55 visits per week), self-harm (increased by six visits per week), and drug poisoning (increased by seven visits per week).

Adolescents 12-17 years old have suffered the greatest increases in mental health problems. 

Self-harm increased by 30 visits per week during 2020, 210 visits per week during 2021, and 207 visits per week during January 2022, the CDC reports noted.

Drug poisonings increased by 12 visits per week during 2020, 171 visits per week during 2021, and 178 visits per week during January 2022 and eating disorders increased by nine visits per week during 2020, 41 visits per week during 2021, and 38 visits per week during January 2022, the reports said.

In addition, the reports said psychosocial problems increased by 78 visits per week during 2021 and 62 visits per week during January 2022 and mental health conditions (depression, eating disorders, OCD, anxiety, etc.) and substance use increased by 113 visits per week during 2021 and 197 visits per week during January 2022.

“The CDC report said ‘prolonged time at home … might have amplified adversities and stressors among others,’” Smith said. The report stated that “exposure to adverse childhood experiences, such as loss of parents and caregivers, increases in parental mental health challenges and substance use, and financial vulnerabilities might have been exacerbated by the pandemic and are associated with poor mental health outcomes among children and adolescents. 

"In addition the pandemic disrupted social and physical activities [as] many adolescents have experienced substantial disruption to daily and academic routines, faced uncertainty and loneliness, and increased social media use,” according to the CDC.

A recent study in Virginia found that reading benchmarks in children from kindergarten through second grade have fallen by more than 13% over 2019. The study showed that the effects were particularly harmful for minorities, including black and Hispanic students, as well as children who are disabled or from low-income households.

The negative health impacts of masks on children are so apparent that numerous doctors have called for an end to child masking, including Dr. Shira Doron, a hospital epidemiologist at Tufts Medical Center and associate professor at Tufts University School of Medicine.

Doron co-authored an op-ed for The Washington Post on the issue with Dr. Westyn Branch-Elliman, also an infectious diseases physician and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Dr. Elissa Perkins, an associate professor of emergency medicine and director of emergency medicine infectious disease management at Boston Medical Center/Boston University School of Medicine.

“Masks specifically inhibit learning of reading, for instance, it is very difficult for children to hear and pronounce correct phonics-sounds when the teacher and student are masked,” Smith said. 

Masks also inhibit speech development and communication through facial expressions, she said.

“Young children still learning to read and communicate were greatly affected,” Smith said. “Kids with special needs such as autism or speech delays were also especially affected by mandatory masking. Doctors have been seeing firsthand the damages caused by masks, in terms of psychological impacts as well as educational and emotional well-being.”

She said while these reports are interesting and useful, they only match stories she has heard from people closely involved with students.

“These reports and studies corroborate the experiences that have been shared with me by hundreds of New Mexico parents, teachers, social workers and learning specialists,” Smith said. “New Mexicans are greatly concerned about increased mental health problems in children due to the New Mexico pandemic response measures [including lengthy school closures and mask mandates]. For instance, a school social worker in Albuquerque reported greatly increased levels of anxiety and depression in schoolchildren.

“New Mexico teachers and school personnel have reported that masks directly impede the learning of crucial skills such as reading, have serious negative effects on children’s emotional and developmental health, and interfere with children’s ability to learn communication and facial expressions,” she added. “School closures/online schooling led to many children falling behind in school overall.”

What makes this development even more disturbing is it may have been done needlessly, Smith said, with little to no scientific evidence.

"It is known that children have extremely low risk from COVID-19 illness (and the CDC has acknowledged that COVID-19 is less severe for children than seasonal influenza),” she said. “Given that we know masks are harming children educationally, mentally, and emotionally, it does not make sense that children should ever be required to wear masks.”