New analysis of Google search data reveals that mental health is amongst the most-searched for topics by parents in the UK.
Anxiety is the most Googled mental health condition for children, with searches looking for help diagnosing children with the condition rising by 190 percent in the past five years, and queries about panic attacks in young people increasing by an incredible 5,000 percent during this period.
This is closely followed by searches for neurodiversity, with 1,000 UK parents per month turning to Google for advice on whether their child has autism.
The analysis, which was conducted by leading name-label manufacturer MyNametags.com, further highlights British parents’ growing reliance on Google to help with all aspects of raising children. In fact, parents across the country use the search engine to answer questions about their children over 10,000 times per day, a third more than this time five years ago.
Alongside mental health, children’s physical health was one of the most commonly Googled aspects of parenting in the last 12 months, with searches concerning chickenpox, croup, and asthma topping the list.
This was followed by more practical, everyday queries about parenting. For instance, searches for what age a child can be left on their own have increased by 280 percent, whilst queries about what age their child can use a booster seat have spiked to 540 percent higher than this time five years ago.
Lars B. Andersen, Managing Director at My Nametags, comments: “We offer parents advice on preventing lost belongings every day, so we were interested to find out what more about what other pressing questions families have.
“It was eye opening to discover how many parents are turning to Google for information and resources to help them manage their children’s mental health.
“Whilst the internet is an incredibly valuable tool for parenting advice, we’d always recommend families use trusted sources for information on health and wellbeing, such as the NHS and established mental health charities.”
Top 10 most Googled parenting questions last year:
- Can I go to work if my child has chickenpox?
- How to check my child benefit application
- Is my child autistic?
- What is my cousin’s child to me?
- Why does my child keep getting croup?
- Does my child have ADHD?
- Does my child have asthma quiz
- Does my child have diabetes quiz
- How much is in my child’s trust fund?
- What should I do if my child has covid-19?
Visit the My Nametags website for answers to parents’ most Googled questions about sending their children back to school.