Teenagers lack epilepsy awareness

Nearly half of American teenagers have never heard of epilepsy or have never read anything about it, according to research published.

Only 4% of the 19,000 teenagers surveyed thought epilepsy was contagious, but another 22% were not sure whether it was contagious or not, and 23% did not know enough about the condition to know one way or another.

Nearly half of the young people surveyed said they would not tell their friends if they had the condition, but nearly 70% said they would want a friend to tell them if he or she had epilepsy.

Eric Hargis, president of the Epilepsy Foundation, said that the survey results showed "teens that lacked information about epilepsy engaged in behaviors that were stigma-producing."

The stigma of epilepsy was also apparent in responses that indicated that over 40% of teenagers believed that having epilepsy might make them unpopular and 37% thought it would increase the likelihood of getting picked on.

11% of those questioned said they would not date someone with epilepsy, and 44% said they were unsure whether they would date someone with epilepsy.

Sign Up for Emails

Stay up to date with the latest epilepsy news, stories from the community, and more.