What We Learned From the School Reopening Debate
A trio of pediatricians argue that the closure of public schools to in-person learning has done long-term damage to a vulnerable population — and it could be a preview of an even larger crisis.
More than one year after the pandemic began, many U.S. public schools are not yet fully open to in-person learning.
Photographer: Michael Loccisano/Getty Images North AmericaThe shuttering of many public schools to in-person learning for a year has unleashed an avalanche of physical and mental health consequences for children. As pediatricians, we are seeing rising rates of obesity and related high blood pressure and liver disease that could take years to reverse. The pediatric mental health system, which was overburdened before the pandemic, is now overwhelmed in many parts of the country. In our practices, we have seen increasing number of children and adolescents presenting with sadness, depression, anxiety, eating disorders and suicidality.
But we were failing our kids long before the pandemic: The rapidly unfolding climate crisis is also profoundly shaping the physical and mental health of U.S. children. How we choose to come together or how we come apart will determine the fate of this generation and generations to come.