Adolescent Health and Safety: A Comprehensive Review

Adolescents, defined as individuals aged 10–19 years, represent a vital population segment undergoing rapid physical,psychological, and social transformations. This period of transition offers significant opportunities for growth butalso presents multifaceted health and safety challenges. Globally, over 1.2 million adolescents die annually fromlargely preventable causes including accidents, violence, and reproductive health complications. This comprehensivereview examines the diverse dimensions of adolescent health and safety, covering physical health, mental well-being,sexual and reproductive health, substance use, violence, and injury prevention. It highlights the influence of socialdeterminants and emerging threats such as digital risks and climate change. The roles of families, communities, healthsystems, and policy frameworks are discussed as crucial enablers for promoting adolescent health. The article furtheridentifies key challenges such as limited access to adolescent-friendly services, stigma, mental health neglect, andinequities. Future directions emphasize strengthening health systems, expanding mental health support, enhancinghealth education, empowering youth participation, improving data collection, and fostering multisectoral collaboration.Addressing adolescent health through a holistic, inclusive, and evidence-based approach is essential for securing thewell-being of this generation and ensuring sustainable societal development.