This week’s roundup covers new national data on teen anxiety and binge eating, a study on the stigma parents feel when a child is struggling, a survey of Massachusetts teachers, questions about how states will spend Meta settlement money, and new federal grants for youth mental health care in Oklahoma City.
National survey estimates about one in six U.S. teens has moderate to severe anxiety symptoms
UConn Today, October 15, 2026
A study in JAMA Pediatrics led by UConn researcher T. Greg Rhee analyzed responses from 15,730 young people ages 12 to 20 in the 2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, the first year the survey asked about anxiety. About one in six reported moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, girls reported them more often than boys, and higher anxiety was linked with more depression, suicidal thoughts, and substance use. Only about half of teens with moderate or severe symptoms had received mental health support, and male, racial and ethnic minority, and uninsured teens were less likely to get help. The data are self reported and come from a single year, so they offer a baseline rather than a trend.
CDC survey asks about binge eating for the first time and finds it is commonly reported by high school students
STAT, October 15, 2026
The CDC’s 2025 Youth Risk Behavior Survey of nearly 7,000 high school students included questions on binge eating, defined as eating an unusually large amount of food in a short time with a sense of losing control, for the first time. According to STAT, about 40 percent of students reported at least one such episode in the past 30 days, and binge eating was associated with frequent social media use, poor mental health, food insecurity, and economic strain. These are associations from a survey, and experts quoted in the article note they do not show cause and effect. It is the first national data on disordered eating from this survey in about a decade.
Interview study explores the stigma parents feel when a child has a mental health or substance use problem
Weill Cornell Medicine, October 13, 2026
Researchers interviewed 24 parents of children with ADHD, depression, or substance use problems for a preliminary study published in the journal Psychiatric Services. Parents described feeling judged by relatives, teachers, neighbors, and health care providers, and said stigma tended to arise when they felt they were falling short of ideals such as emotional support, open communication, and setting boundaries. The study is small and early, and the authors suggest that supporting parents in meeting those ideals could help reduce self blame. Caregivers who have felt judged while supporting a struggling child may find their experience reflected in these accounts.
Most Massachusetts teachers in a new survey describe anxiety and depression as problems for their students
WBUR, October 14, 2026
Researchers at the UMass Amherst Center for Education Policy and the UMass Amherst Poll surveyed Massachusetts public school teachers over the summer, with about 1,200 of 18,000 invited teachers responding and results weighted to reflect the state’s teaching workforce. Ninety four percent said anxiety and depression are a problem or a major problem for their students, and many teachers said more school counselors would help them stay in the profession. The survey reflects teachers’ perceptions rather than direct measures of student mental health, and the response rate was low.
States face few spending rules for their share of the Meta youth social media settlement
The Boston Globe (from The New York Times), October 13, 2026
Meta agreed in August to pay as much as $17 billion to settle claims by 47 states that it designed Instagram and Facebook to hook children, and states are now deciding how to use the money. Several attorneys general have said funds should address harms from unhealthy social media use and expand youth crisis services, but the settlement lists uses such as crisis lines and after school programs only as options, and it has no general requirement that states report how they spend the money. Part of the payment also depends on other platforms adopting similar protections. How each state chooses to spend its share could affect what youth mental health services are available locally.
Oklahoma City and its public schools receive $11.5 million in federal grants for youth mental health care
News 9, October 15, 2026
The City of Oklahoma City and Oklahoma City Public Schools received two grants totaling $11.5 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The city’s $4 million grant, over four years, will support mental health care for young people up to age 21, and the school district’s roughly $7.5 million grant, over five years, will fund in school behavioral health care, prevention, and early intervention.
This roundup summarizes news reported by other outlets and is for general information only. It is not medical or mental health advice.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in the US.
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