Are firearms the leading cause of death among children? It depends on the age.

Gun-related incidents are the leading cause of death among U.S. children and teens, according to new data released this week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2020 was the first year firearms surpassed motor vehicle accidents as the leading cause of death among children and teens. 2021 was a repeat of 2020, according to the CDC.

However, the statistic is dependent on how you define ‘children’. The CDC’s data includes children from 0 to 19 years old, even though 18 and 19-year-olds are legally adults. The data of older teenagers skews the number of child and teen deaths significantly higher. According to the health policy research institute KFF’s analysis of the CDC data set, teens ages 18 and 19 have a firearm mortality rate of 25.2 per 100,000, compared to a rate of 3.7 per 100,000 for children ages 1-17 in the U.S.

Straight Arrow News compiled data from the CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. What SAN noticed from the data, is depending on the age of the children and teens, the leading cause of death changes.

The NHTSA compiles annual statistics on the number of children and teens who die in motor vehicle accidents. We compared motor vehicle deaths among different age groups from 2019, 2020, and 2021 to firearm-related deaths from 2019-2021. In comparing toddler and young children age groups, there are more ages included in the firearm-related deaths data. We compared 0-3 year-old motor vehicle deaths to 0-4 year-old firearm-related deaths. Then, 0-7 year-old motor vehicle deaths to 0-9 firearm-related deaths. That is because the NHTSA compiled their data in groups, not individual ages we could separate. However, even with a smaller sample size, motor vehicle deaths still outnumber the kids dying by guns in these age groups.

For infants and toddlers, the leading cause of death was motor vehicle accidents in 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2019, there were 246 motor vehicle deaths compared to 86 firearm-related deaths. In 2020, there were 245 motor vehicle deaths compared to 135 firearm-related deaths. In 2021, there were 277 motor vehicle deaths compared to 153 firearm-related deaths. From 2019 to 2021, an infant or toddler was twice as likely to die in a car crash than by gunfire.

For young children, the leading cause of death was motor vehicle accidents in 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2019, there were 519 motor vehicle deaths compared to 168 firearm-related deaths. In 2020, there were 523 motor vehicle deaths compared to 257 firearm-related deaths. In 2021, there were 598 motor vehicle deaths compared to 291 firearm-related deaths. In 2019, a young child was three times more likely to die in a car accident. In 2021, a young child was twice as likely to die in a motor vehicle accident than by a firearm.

For children and teens 14 years and younger, the leading cause of death was motor vehicle accidents in 2019, 2020, and 2021. In 2019, there were 1,064 motor vehicle deaths compared to 510 firearm-related deaths. In 2020, there were 1,101 motor vehicle deaths compared to 751 firearm-related deaths. In 2021, there were 1,184 motor vehicle deaths compared to 825 firearm-related deaths.

It is when you include teenagers up to 19 years old do firearm-related deaths surpass motor vehicle deaths, becoming the number one leading cause of death among U.S. children and teens in 2020 and remained the number one threat in 2021. In 2019, there were 3,458 motor vehicle deaths compared to 3,390 firearm-related deaths. In 2020, there were 3,868 motor vehicle deaths compared to 4,368 firearm-related deaths. In 2021, there were 4,242 motor vehicle deaths compared to 4,752 firearm-related deaths.

Gun deaths among children are tragically increasing at a fast rate. In 2021, more children than ever before died by gunfire. 4,752 children and teens ages 0-19 lost their lives to a gunshot wound. That is a 40% increase from just three years ago.