The past couple of years have not been good for many kids mental health, but new data offers some devastating insight into the toll.

On Monday, Mental Health America released an analysis of 5.4 million online mental health screenings people took through the organizations website in 2021. According to the report, 45% of individuals who took a screening were ages 11 to 17, marking a 16% increase since 2019.

Rates of suicidal ideation were also the highest among young people, especially LGBTQ+ youth. Overall, 51% of depression screeners in the 11-to-17 age range reported frequent suicidal ideation on more than half or nearly every day of the previous two weeks. That number rose to 52% for young people of color and 63% for youth who identified as LGBTQ+.

What do these numbers mean?

We want to draw attention to these numbers because its reaching a crisis point, Maddy Reinert, senior director population health at Mental Health America, told HuffPost. The sheer number of people under age 18 who are struggling with their mental health and looking for resources and supports online is higher than ever before.

She also noted that 9 in 10 young people ages 11 to 17 who screened themselves for depression on the website scored with symptoms of moderate to severe depression a higher rate than any other age group.

Mental Health Americas data was collected from its online screening program, which began in 2014 and consists of 10 free, anonymous, confidential and clinically-validated tools on the organizations website. Its important to note that the population taking these screeners are people seeking mental health help and resources, so they are more likely to test positive for these symptoms than the average individual.

Still, Reinert believes the data particularly the uptick in young users seeking out these resources underscores the extent of the mental health crisis affecting American youth today.

Of course, we know that COVID-19 has really affected mental health, not only making us worry about our health and the health of our loved ones but also drastically changing our social environments, she said. About 70% of our 11-to-17-year-olds reported that loneliness or social isolation was contributing to their mental health problems. And weve seen a lot more youth express concerns with financial insecurity, showing the impact of COVID-19 and job loss.