One of the things we are often asked about is where to find quality resources for adolescents and teens on health and wellness.  As they spend more and more time talking to peers, and less time talking to parents, adolescence is a time when it really matters.  So here are a few online resources to help teens, and the adults who care about them, find answers to the questions that matter most.

GirlsHealth.gov– This website is from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and is really a great place for tween girls.  With information on healthy eating, body image, friendship advice, dating, and more, it’s the kind of site you can happily let your daughter explore on her own.  I only wish they offered a boys health companion site.  So often, the boys in this age group get overlooked.

TeensHealth– Another website from HHS, this site is geared toward the older teens (high school-aged).  Similar in content to the GirlsHealth. gov, it does have a sexual health component and an “Ask the Expert” section as well.  If you have (or work with) younger kids, be sure to check out KidsHealth.org too.

TeenHealth FX– This is a pretty informative site from Atlantic Health’s Community Health Education and the Adolescent/Young Adult Center for Health at Goryeb Children’s Hospital in New Jersey.  This site is chock-full of great information and content developed by teenagers.  There are some cheesy lists, but overall, I think it is laid out in a way that is informative and accessible without being too juvenile.  It also offers an “Ask the Expert” section, and it addresses serious mental health concerns such as depression & suicide, cutting, and dating violence with candor and thoughtfulness.  It’s a really excellent site for teens, parents, educators, and clinicians.  And they have links to other useful resources.

We’re Talking and We’re Talking Too– These sites are from the Palo Alto Medical Foundation and offer another source of good information.  The teen site (We’re Talking) is divided into 3 main categories: general health, emotional health, and sexual health, all of which offer reliable information as best as I can tell.  There’s even an article on piercings and tattoos (great way to scare your kid away from the belly ring!) The pre-teen site (We’re Talking Too) is a little more juvenile in its design which might turn some of the 11-12 year olds, but it still has good information. If you get your 9 or 10 year old understanding that there are quality resources on the web with health information, then by the time they reach puberty ,they’ll know how to distinguish good information from urban legend and fake science.

loveisrespect– This site is on dating and relationship basics. It is not geared toward teens specifically, but it has very useful information for teens to know about dating. It has sections that talk about abuse and whether or not your relationship is healthy. There is a Live Chat option for those in crisis, as well as call & text support options. The site is overall about mutual respect in relationships.

Adolescent Wellness, Inc.– This website is a blog that is an overview on how to help adolescents deal with stressful situations and to aid them from falling into depression and anxiety.

 

while we make every effort to review the information on the resources we share, please know that these are independent organizations with a vast amount of information that we simply can’t review it all.  We are in no way affiliated with or responsible for their content.