David Orszag, former Director of the Office of Management and Budget and the Congressional Budget Office, presented on the relationship between socioeconomic status (SES) and lifespan at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the Society for Prevention Research.

Life expectancy in the U.S. has continued to increase over the last decade. However, women in the lowest SES classes actually showed a decrease in life expectancy. All male life expectancy rose, but men in the lower SES classes showed a much smaller increase in life expectancy than men in higher SES classes.

Another presentation given at the Annual Meeting provided insight into potential ways to target children at high risk for expose to adverse events. The program called Child First, founded by Darcy Lowell, and the program Nurse Family Partnership, founded by David Olds, have had success in reducing early childhood stressors often associated with low SES.

Read more about the relationship between life expectancy and SES

Peter Silverstone, a professor in the University of Alberta's Department of Psychiatry, created a program to help lower the rates of suicide, depression, and anxiety in youth. His program EMPATHY was implemented in Red Deer Public Schools with children ages 11-18.

The program begins with an assessment that will screen for anxiety, depression, or suicidal thoughts among the children. Those who are identified as being at risk for suicide or attempted harm are then provided with counseling and are given a guided internet program.

The program has seen dramatic reductions in depression and suicidal thoughts. The number of students who were actively suicidal dropped 76% after just 12 weeks of the program, from 125 to 30.

While these early results have elicited amazing results thus far, Silverstone is still focused on making sure that the results continue this trend in the long-term.

Read more about the EMPATHY program