New Study Reveals the Most Dangerous States for Raising a Teen

A new study by iSharing, a family tracking app that offers real-time location sharing, has determined the most unsafe states for raising a teenager.

To obtain the results, iSharing examined all 50 states based on crime rates and health risks that affect teenagers. The research examined violent crime rates, kidnapping and abduction rates, other extreme risks, and school shooting exposure while measuring how much potential there is for adolescents to experience such things. The study also examined teen birth rates, nicotine vaping, and overall safety scores.

New Mexico Is the Most Dangerous State to Raise a Teen

New Mexico topped the list as the most dangerous state in which to raise a teenager. The violent crime rate in New Mexico is twice as high as neighboring Texas, and it has the most kidnappings in the country. Arkansas came second, boasting the highest teen pregnancy rates in America. In Oklahoma, nearly 1 in 30 students become parents while still in school. In third place, Louisiana also struggles with teen pregnancy issues, with four in 100 affected; and it has the lowest safety rate of any state polled. Louisiana is also home to a “teen vaping epidemic,” with nearly five out of every 100 students addicted to nicotine, the second-highest rate in the country.

Tennessee ranked fourth. Like Oklahoma and Louisiana, the state has a teen pregnancy problem. However, adolescents in Tennessee are also at a severely increased risk of violence. The study reported that hundreds of violent incidents occur each year within each major section of the city, with 70 out of 100,000 students encountering “shooting incidents” at school. In fifth place is Alaska, where five out of every 100 students vape regularly.

Deleware Is Most Affected by School Shooting Incidents

Sixth place went to Delaware, the state most plagued by school shootings, which affects nearly 360 in 100,000 adolescents.

"Parents in high-risk states need tools that work in real time. Location-sharing apps let you know where your teenager is without constant phone calls or texts. In places like New Mexico or Tennessee, where violent crime happens daily, knowing your kid made it to school or got home safely isn't you being paranoid; it's common sense,” according to a spokesperson for iShare. “Technology can't prevent every danger, but it gives families a way to respond faster when something goes wrong."