National Children’s Health Month: Why Health, Stability, and Family Belong Together
- Foster Parent Education
- October 6, 2026
National Children’s Health Month: Why Health, Stability, and Family Belong Together
Every October, National Children’s Health Month gives us an opportunity to think more deeply about what children need to grow, develop, and thrive.
Good health begins with the basics: access to medical care, nutritious food, safe places to live and play, clean air and water, and opportunities to be active. But a child’s well-being is also shaped by emotional security, healthy relationships, consistent caregiving, and a stable environment.
For children and youth in foster care, these pieces of health can be especially important.
At Let It Be Us, our mission is to help children in Illinois foster care connect with foster and adoptive families prepared to meet their individual needs. National Children’s Health Month reminds us that finding the right family and creating greater stability in a child’s life are closely connected to supporting that child’s overall well-being.
Children’s Health is About the Whole Child
Children and teens are still developing physically, emotionally, socially, and cognitively. Their experiences and environments during childhood can influence their health and development well beyond their early years.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Children’s Health Month highlights how a child’s surroundings can affect health. Because children grow and experience their environments differently than adults, creating healthy spaces at home, at school, and in the community is an important part of supporting their well-being.
But protecting children’s health also means looking beyond environmental and physical health alone.
Mental and behavioral health, developmental health, oral health, education, relationships, and emotional security are all part of a child’s overall well-being. For children and teens who have experienced abuse, neglect, trauma, separation, or significant transitions, these areas of well-being can become even more interconnected.
The Unique Health Needs of Children in Foster Care
Children and teens do not enter foster care because something is wrong with them. They often enter care after experiencing circumstances that no child should have to navigate alone.
As a result, some children arrive in foster care with medical, developmental, dental, mental health, or behavioral health needs that have not yet been fully identified or addressed. Others may have ongoing health conditions requiring consistent treatment, medication, specialists, or caregivers who understand how to advocate for their care.
Children and teens entering foster care may have health concerns that require attention as they transition into a new home. The American Academy of Pediatrics encourages early and continued medical attention for children in care so that caregivers and professionals can better understand and respond to each child’s individual health needs. This can include physical health, emotional well-being, development, learning, and dental care.
Continuity matters, too. Children and teens may enter foster care without complete medical records, and placements or providers can change. Appointments, medications, therapies, school services, and other pieces of a child’s care may involve multiple adults and systems.
For a child, health care is therefore not simply about getting to an appointment. It is also about having adults who understand what the child needs, communicate with the people involved in their care, follow through, and continue advocating for them.
Stability Can Support Well-Being
A stable, nurturing relationship with a caregiver can support a child’s mental and behavioral health.
The American Academy of Pediatrics’ resources on foster care emphasize the importance of addressing the health and developmental needs of children and adolescents in foster care. Consistent caregiving, supportive relationships, appropriate health services, and coordinated care can all contribute to a stronger environment for a child’s well-being.
This is one reason diligent foster care and adoption recruitment, matching, and placement matter so much.
A placement is not simply an available bed.
Children and teens have individual strengths and needs. Some need families prepared to care for complex medical conditions. Others may need caregivers with specialized or therapeutic training. Some children and teens need homes that can keep siblings together, support teenagers, respond to trauma-related needs, or provide stability during an emergency.
Finding families who are prepared for those needs can help create stronger foundations for children.
How Let It Be Us Supports the Whole Child
Let It Be Us works throughout Illinois to improve foster care and adoption recruitment, matching, and placement.
Through our foster home recruitment program, Let It Be Us helps expand the network of licensed families available to children throughout Illinois. That includes finding families prepared for many types of foster care and, more importantly, families with the capacity to support children whose medical, behavioral, or other needs may require additional experience and resources.
Through recruitment and placement, Let It Be Us connects children with families whose abilities, experience, and capacity align with their individual needs. That connection matters.
When a child or teen has significant medical needs, finding a caregiver who is prepared to manage appointments, treatments, medications, specialists, and advocacy can make a meaningful difference. When a child or teen has experienced trauma, having a caregiver who understands trauma-informed parenting can help create greater predictability and emotional safety. And when a child or teen needs permanency, identifying a family prepared to understand and support the whole child is essential.
Our work is grounded in the belief that children deserve more than a placement. They deserve families and systems prepared to see their strengths, understand their needs, and support their futures.
What You Can Do During National Children’s Health Month
Supporting children’s health is a shared responsibility.
For foster and adoptive parents, that can mean learning as much as possible about a child’s medical history, keeping records organized, following up on appointments and referrals, advocating for appropriate mental and behavioral health services, and communicating with caseworkers, schools, and health care professionals.
It also means paying attention to what may not appear on a medical chart: whether a child feels safe, whether they have dependable routines, whether they feel heard, and whether the adults around them understand how their experiences may affect their behavior and development.
For people who are not currently foster parents, National Children’s Health Month can also be an invitation to learn more.
Illinois needs families with many different strengths and experiences, including families prepared to care for children with specialized, therapeutic, behavioral, or medical needs. Let It Be Us provides information and resources about foster care and adoption in Illinois for people interested in learning more about foster parenting, adoption, and the needs of children in care.
Becoming informed about foster care, sharing accurate information with others, supporting organizations serving children and families, or considering becoming a licensed foster parent are all ways to contribute.
Healthy Children Need Strong Communities
National Children’s Health Month reminds us that no single ingredient creates a healthy childhood.
Children and teens need access to quality health care. They need healthy environments. They need support for their mental and emotional health. They need adults who advocate for them. And they need safe, nurturing relationships they can depend on.
For children navigating foster care, those needs do not disappear when they enter the child welfare system. In many cases, thoughtful coordination and consistent support become especially important.
At Let It Be Us, we believe that meeting children where they are and finding families prepared to meet their individual needs is an important part of building healthier futures.
This National Children’s Health Month, we invite you to learn more about Let It Be Us, the children and families involved in Illinois foster care, and the many ways each of us can help strengthen the network of care surrounding them.
Resources & Further Reading
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – Children’s Health Month
Learn more about National Children’s Health Month and environmental factors that can affect children’s health.
American Academy of Pediatrics – Foster Care
Resources related to supporting the health and well-being of children and adolescents in foster care.
American Academy of Pediatrics / HealthyChildren.org – Health Screening Requirements for Children in Foster Care
Information about health screenings, comprehensive evaluations, follow-up assessments, and ongoing care for children entering foster care.
Let It Be Us – Foster Care & Adoption in Illinois
Learn about Let It Be Us and its work to support children and families throughout Illinois.
Let It Be Us – Mission & Programs
Learn about Let It Be Us programs focused on foster care recruitment, placement, adoption, and building the pool of licensed foster families in Illinois.
Let It Be Us – Foster Care & Adoption Information
Resources for individuals and families interested in learning more about foster care and adoption in Illinois.
Marketing and Technology Specialist & Recruitment Event Manager
Daisy holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations from DePaul University. She has experience as a creative strategist specializing in social media management, content creation, and digital marketing. She is equipped with cutting-edge knowledge in Google Analytics and consumer behavior used to develop visionary marketing campaigns that drive brand growth. Daisy’s strong marketing background will support the Let It Be Us Adoption Listing Service leadership in Illinois child welfare.
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