Most of today’s parents accept that their daughters and sons are being challenged in ways they were not while growing up.

Unfortunately, many parents today, especially those who remember fondly what they describe as carefree teenage years, resist the notion that the feelings their teenagers are experiencing in the America of today might be much different from what they remember regarding their lives while in high school.

Even the shootings and other violence some schools have experienced over the past several decades in this country have failed to sway some parents’ thinking that all still is OK and that beefed-up attention on their part really isn’t necessary.

The continued existence of the still-too-prevalent attitude that bad things happen “somewhere else,” not here, must be acknowledged and be subjected to serious rethinking.

Statistics in a Feb. 14 Wall Street Journal article provide plenty of evidence why.

The article in question, “Teen girls reveal record levels of sadness,” paints a deeply troubling picture — a troubling picture for which the coronavirus pandemic is not the sole culprit.

The article began by saying “nearly three out of five high school girls in the U.S. who were surveyed reported feelings of persistent sadness or hopelessness in 2021, a roughly 60% increase over the past decade, new research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.”

According to the article, the 2021 figure of 57% of high school girls having experienced feelings of sadness or hopelessness in the 12 months prior compared with 36% in 2011.

“Thirty percent reported they seriously considered attempting suicide in 2021, up from 19% in 2011,” the article said.

The numbers are startling.

And while the article and the research from which it is derived focuses initially on teenage girls, there also is plenty to be concerned about regarding teenage boys.

The CDC research found that 29% of high-school boys reported experiencing sadness and hopelessness in 2021, 14% of whom seriously considered attempting suicide — up from 13% in 2011.

The report also determined that, regarding the years in question, persistent sadness and hopelessness worsened across all racial and ethnic groups.

Numbers by themselves tell a story, but they don’t necessarily suggest or provide a solution. The easiest road to a solution in most homes begins with thoughtful, informed, concerned, open-minded parents who promote the concepts of trust, understanding and helpfulness.

The CDC research also showed ongoing and extreme distress “among teens who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning their sexual identity, or another nonheterosexual gender identity.”

Communication between parents and their teenage children and willingness to seek professional help for cases crying out for special attention are indicative of the right attitude and mutual determination needed to overcome these unfortunate situations.

Whatever the causes, whether peer-based, resulting from sexual violence or some other circumstances, the situation must be accorded the best judgment that can be mustered.

Families grieving the loss of a son or daughter because of sadness or hopelessness that went unchecked must become much less common than what currently afflicts America.