As many as 20 percent of U.S. high school students admit to being bullied, and it makes sense that this could lead to depression or other mental health problems. But what about the kids doing the bullying?
A link might be possible there as well.
A study presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) national conference in October found that children diagnosed with mental health disorders were three times more likely to be identified as bullies than those without.
The mental health status of children who bully others hasn’t been much investigated, but when researchers looked at data on 64,000 children included in the 2007 National Survey of Children’s Health, they found that just over 15 percent of children were identified as bullies by a parent or guardian. Looking closer, they found that children diagnosed with depression were three times more likely to bully, while those diagnosed with Oppositional Defiant Disorder were six times more likely.
The study wasn’t able to determine whether the children’s mental health problems caused the bullying or vice-versa, but researchers note that a better understanding of the relationship between mental health and bullying – and the risk profile of childhood bullies – could lead to more effective anti-bullying programs.
“These findings highlight the importance of providing psychological support not only to victims of bullying, but to bullies as well,” says study author Frances G. Turcotte-Benedict, M.D., of Hasbro Children’s Hospital in Providence, RI.
If your kids play sports and you want to keep them from getting injured, enroll them in a program with good coaches, and make sure they wear proper safety gear and play by the rules.
Parents have a new reason to send sleep-deprived teens to bed earlier. Doing so might reduce kids’ risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• 61% of obese teens in the survey had one risk factor for cardiovascular disease – such as high LDL cholesterol, high blood pressure, physical inactivity or diabetes – besides their weight
A new study finds that pharmacies often gave 17-year-olds wrong information about – and denied them access to – the emergency contraceptive sold under the brand name Plan B One Step. Meanwhile, doctors calling the same pharmacies got accurate facts.
A colleague was telling me this morning about how her 5-year-old pointed to the ashtray in their car and asked, “What’s that?” – a question unthinkable in our own smoky childhoods. But there’s evidence that not all kids are so healthily unaware of the trappings of tobacco.
As part of their ongoing campaign to get older kids – think tweens and teens – to get the immunizations they need, public health experts have declared Feb. 12-18 Preteen Vaccine Week. Here is some information from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health about updated vaccine recommendations and changes to state law that apply to this age group. Ideally, these vaccines are given as part of routine doctor visits, to give healthcare providers a chance to discuss other health issues.
Building a healthy adult brain literally begins with enough iron intake in your teens. That’s the finding from a new study by UCLA researchers. “We found that healthy brain wiring in adults depended on having good iron levels in your teenage years,” lead author Paul Thompson, a neurology professor at UCLA, said in releasing the study Jan. 11.
News out today from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) highlights a range of vaccine-related issues.
