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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Prevention and Risk Factors

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

• No links available

Research

• Statistics and Research
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Teenagers

Summary

Your child spends more time at school than anywhere else except home. Schools can have a major effect on children's health. Schools can teach children about health, and promote healthy behaviors. Physical education classes give children a chance to get exercise.

Schools work to:

• Prevent risky behaviors such as alcohol and tobacco use or bullying and cyberbullying
• Encourage healthy habits like exercise and healthy eating
• Deal with specific health problems in students, such as asthma, obesity and infectious diseases

The school building and environment should be a safe and healthy place for your child.

Start Here

• Healthy Schools (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Student Health and Academic Achievement (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Reducing the Spread of Illness in Child Care (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Safe Schools during the COVID-19 Pandemic (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• 10 Ways to Help Your Child Succeed in Elementary School (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Backpack Safety (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Health Problems at School (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Playground Safety (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation)
• School Refusal (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry)
• Your Teenager at School (American Academy of Pediatrics)

Specifics

• Asthma Factsheet (for Schools) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Can People with Asthma Play Sports? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• CDC Healthy Schools: Physical Activity Facts (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Food Allergies at School (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Healthy School Environments (Environmental Protection Agency)
• Helping the Student with Diabetes Succeed: A Guide for School Personnel (National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
• Mold and Indoor Air Quality in Schools (Environmental Protection Agency)
• School and Concussions (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• School and Diabetes (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• See, Hear, Speak: Are Kids' Senses Ready for School? (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

• About School Violence (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Adolescent and School Health: Data and Statistics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• CDC Healthy Schools: Data and Research (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2017 (Department of Education)
• Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Factors associated with perceived health of school-aged children in rural Rwanda:...
• Article: Waist circumference as a parameter in school-based interventions to prevent overweight...
• Article: School-based healthy eating interventions for adolescents aged 10-19 years: an umbrella...
• School Health -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• KidsHealth (Nemours Foundation)

Teenagers

• 4 Ways to Make Homework Easier (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Back to School (Nemours Foundation)
• Backpack Basics (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• School Violence: What Students Can Do (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Test-Taking Tips (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish