Report Urges Broader Effort to Stem Emotional Disorders in Youth

Mental health tab costs U.S. about $247 billion a year, experts say

Problems such as depression, anxiety, conduct disorders and substance abuse are about as common among children and adolescents as limb fractures, according to the report released Friday by the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine. In any given year, it notes, about 14 to 20 percent of young people in the United States have a mental, emotional or behavioral disorder.

most mental, emotional and behavioral disorders in adults have their roots in childhood and adolescence. More than half of adults who've had such disorders report that they started in childhood or early adolescence

Initial symptoms often occur two to four years before the onset of a full-blown disorder. It's during this early stage that preventive programs can help, the report said