title: The economic impact of adolescent health promotion policies and programs.
abstract: Adolescence is a critical period in the human lifecycle, a time of rapid physical and socioemotional growth and a time when individuals establish lifestyle habits and health behaviors that often endure into and have lasting effects in adulthood. Adolescent health promotion programs play a critical role in helping youth establish healthy lifestyles. In this article, we present a socio-ecological model as a framework for identifying effective policy and program areas that have a positive impact on adolescent health behaviors. Our discussion focuses on 4 key areas: reproductive health; obesity prevention; mental health and substance use, including smoking; and injury and violence prevention. We proceed with an overview of the current status of state-led adolescent health promotion policies and programs from a newly created policy database and then examine the evidence on the cost of preventable adolescent health problems and the cost-effectiveness of health promotion programs and policies. We conclude by discussing the threat posed to adolescent health promotion services and state-led policy initiatives by proposed and implemented federal and state-level budget cuts and examine the possible health and economic repercussions of reducing or eliminating these programs.
authors.affiliation: National Center for Children in Poverty, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA. aratani@nccp.org
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Aratani
authors.forename: Susan Wile
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Curtis
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Skinner
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D016497:Adolescent Health Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D002648:Child; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D006285:Health Planning / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006291:Health Policy / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000191:economics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000191:economics; D006801:Humans; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult