Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans displaced over 163,000 children. Many of Katrina’s youth, five years after the nation’s most devastating natural and man-made disaster, are still in crisis. They are in urgent need to “return to a state of normalcy.” This is according to a five-year status report on children affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita published by Children’s Health Fund (CHF).

CHF’s report found:

• Katrina’s youth were 4.5 times more likely to suffer from symptoms associated with serious emotional disturbance
• Only half of children with these problems got professional help

Gulf Coast children have another disaster to overcome in the wake of Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

A recent study by the National Center for Disaster Preparedness (NCDP) found

• More than a third of parents said that their children experienced mental and physical problems as a result of the spill

If your child is experiencing distress as the result of a disaster, you may want to visit your pediatrician and consult this guide published by Center for Health Services.