Health EDUCATION

What teachers want kids to know about mental health, dangerous behavior

Health education in schools matters because healthy students have a better chance of making the most of their educational opportunities, said Kimberly Ohara-Borowski, health teacher at Ocean View High School in Huntington Beach, California, and SHAPE America’s 2018 National Teacher of the Year in Health Education.

Health educators tackle myriad topics with their students, covering risky behaviors including the dangers of drugs, alcohol and tobacco, unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, and actions that can result in unintentional injuries and violence.

It’s not all focused on the negative, though. Health educators promote healthy habits like embracing a well-balanced diet and the benefits of exercise, and find time to talk about mental health, Ohara-Borowski said.

Childhood is the right time to talk to kids about these serious issues because bad behaviors established while young are difficult to shake later in life, she said, and contribute markedly to the leading causes of death, disability and social problems among youth and adults in the United States.

Inconsistency in the way health is taught to children from state to state is one of the biggest challenges facing health education, Ohara-Borowski said. Often students are exposed to just a single semester of health education in middle school and another in high school.

“What we’re teaching are the most important things they need to learn in their lifetimes, but it’s very limited at only a semester,” Ohara-Borowski said.

Health educators not only talk about dangers but also what messages kids are getting from their parents, online and on social media.

“E-cigarettes and terms like ‘vaping’ or ‘juuling’ are trending,” Ohara-Borowski said.

Health education is currently undergoing changes in how it’s taught, however, with educators focusing on a more skills-based approach, she said. The goal is to give kids functional knowledge and good decision-making skills so that when they are offered an e-cigarette, for example, they will understand why they should refuse and have the confidence to do so.

“Skills-based health education teaches kids to make healthy choices, to set goals and achieve goals, and to reset goals if needed,” she said.

Mental health awareness

Concerns over the mental health of children and teens is also a huge topic for health educators.

“People downplay the warning signs of mental health” issues, Ohara-Borowski said.

Adults who say “It’s just a phase” or “She’s just acting like a teenager” may be missing that a child is struggling with a mental illness. One in five children ages 13-18 have or will have a serious mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. For 50 percent of kids, the signs or symptoms of mental illness show up by age 14. Some of the most common are mood, conduct and anxiety disorders. Suicide is the third-leading cause of death for ages 10-24.

“Recognize the warning signs and let them know if they’re struggling, you can help,” Ohara-Borowski said. Warning signs include feeling sad or withdrawn, changes in diet, intense worries or fears, use of drugs or alcohol, and changes in behavior including difficulty concentrating or staying still.