U.S. Surgeon General Urges Action on Parental Mental Health Crisis

The U.S. surgeon general issued an advisory highlighting the mental health challenges faced by parents due to modern stresses. The advisory calls for increased resources and policy changes from governments, businesses, and community organizations to support parents and caregivers, emphasizing the link between parental and youth mental health.

The U.S. surgeon general on Wednesday issued a public health advisory about the impact of modern stresses on parents' mental health, calling on governments, businesses, and community organizations to increase resources to provide them more support.

The advisory, issued by Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, highlighted numerous stress factors affecting parents and recommended policy changes and improved community support. The recommendations include expanding funding for parental support, establishing a national paid family and medical leave program, ensuring paid sick time, and providing affordable mental health care options for caregivers.

In an interview, Murthy emphasized that helping parents is crucial for addressing youth mental health issues. The advisory also encouraged employers to implement stress management training and work-life balance programs while urging healthcare and social services to screen parents for mental health conditions. Murthy pointed out that nearly half of parents feel completely overwhelmed, and many single parents experience high levels of loneliness.

Despite the failure of President Joe Biden's legislation on paid family and medical leave due to political opposition, Murthy stressed the need to invest in parental well-being, hoping it would become a non-partisan issue.

(With inputs from agencies.)