A fresh U.S. report involving over 800,000 students reveals that middle and high school pupils engaged in sports are notably less inclined to express suicidal thoughts or actions — even as youth suicide rates have surged across the country. However, involvement in sports has dwindled for various reasons, potentially restricting access to this vital protective element.

The report, “Assessing the Association Between Sport Participation and Suicide Ideation and Behaviors Among Middle and High School Students in the U.S. Between 2007 and 2023,” appears in the August 2025 Annals of Epidemiology and is directed by Massy Mutumba, assistant professor at the School of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis. She conducted the research while at the University of Michigan, alongside co-authors Philip T. Veliz, John Jardine, and Ashley Cureton from the University of Michigan.

“Traditionally, organized sports have served as a crucial protective element against suicidal thoughts and actions, and they continue to do so,” Mutumba stated. “Yet there is a decline in student participation, particularly in middle school, necessitating new strategies to enhance access and incorporate mental health into sports environments.”

Suicide rates are escalating dangerously among children and adolescents in the U.S., presenting a significant public health crisis. It is the eighth leading cause of death for children aged 10-14 and the third for youth aged 15-24. This study examined Youth Risk Behavior Survey data spanning from 2007 to 2023, utilizing feedback from 326,085 middle schoolers and 508,737 high schoolers across 41 states. Among middle school students, 20.5% had seriously contemplated suicide, 13.5% had formulated a plan, and 8.6% had attempted it. For high schoolers, 16.6% reported suicidal thoughts in the past year, 13.5% made a plan, and 9.2% attempted suicide.

As part of the evaluation, researchers investigated the relationship between suicide risk and participation in organized sports in the prior year — a protective factor that could be utilized more extensively.

Key findings

• Suicide risk (rates of suicidal ideation, planning, and attempts) escalated sharply among youth from 2007 to 2023.
• Participation in sports fell from 57.4% of high school students in 2019 to 49.1% in 2021 and has remained consistently lower than pre-pandemic levels.
• This decline was aggravated by rising costs (which disproportionately impact students from low-income backgrounds), the COVID-19 pandemic, and increasing psychosocial challenges. These challenges — encompassing depression, generalized and social anxiety, and body image concerns — often arise during puberty and may hinder students from engaging in organized sports.
• For high school students, the protective connection between sports and mental health remained robust both prior to and after the pandemic.
• Among middle schoolers, the relationship between sports participation and lowered suicide risk was somewhat weaker in 2023 compared to before the pandemic — a trend that may be indicative of developmental variations. Increased psychosocial challenges often grow with age, which could clarify why this association is stronger in high school students, noted Mutumba.

This study is among the first to monitor these trends before, during, and after the pandemic across nationally representative samples. Furthermore, the research gives focused attention to middle schoolers. Despite rising suicide rates among younger children, most comprehensive studies have concentrated on older adolescents, creating a significant gap in research and preventive measures, according to Mutumba. Suicide is still widely perceived as primarily a concern for older teens.

Involvement in sports provides numerous physical and mental health advantages, such as diminished depressive and anxiety symptoms, reduced stress, enhanced overall well-being, and increased self-esteem, state the researchers.

The results highlight sports as an accessible, scalable, and sustainable public health approach for suicide prevention, yet they suggest that maximizing the benefits of sports may necessitate innovative strategies.

The authors advocate for increased investment in equitable access to sporting opportunities — particularly in areas where risks are highest. Young individuals in marginalized communities face greater odds of suicidal behavior and limited access to mental health resources. To address these disparities, the report proposes concrete strategies such as subsidizing or entirely covering fees for school and community-based programs, investing in local facilities (green spaces, basketball courts, and baseball fields), and implementing sliding-scale fee structures. These initiatives are especially crucial in middle school when early participation in sports can establish lasting habits and provide essential mental health support.

The authors also recommend embedding evidence-based mental health programs into organized sports initiatives. This aligns with Mutumba’s ongoing efforts to create scalable, community-oriented strategies that integrate mental health support into systems serving adolescents.

“Sports provide more than just physical activity,” Mutumba remarked. “They offer structure, social connections, and a sense of belonging that can help alleviate the intense pressures faced by youth today.”

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