4 Troubled Teens Blog

Cognitive behavioral therapy can be an effective treatment for depression, according to a new study from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. The study also found that depressive symptoms do not worsen if a patient has to wait months for therapy.

Researchers followed 174 people who completed 18 months of therapy at the University clinic. Most had to wait at least five months or more to enter treatment.

"On completion of therapy, patients reported significantly fewer symptoms than on commencement ," wrote Dr. Amrei Schindler, lead author of the study.

Cognitive behavioral therapy has already proved to be effective in a variety of treatment environments, including residential treatment for eating disorders.

Two new research studies have found biological links to both antisocial behavior and schizophrenia.

The first study was from the University of Cambridge in Great Britain. Professor Ian Goodyer, and his colleagues used brain scanning techniques to discover differences between the brains of normal children and those who have conduct disorders.

• Dr. Goodyer had the children look at faces with angry, sad or neutral expressions.
• Normal children showed activity in the area of the brain responsible for processing emotions.
• However, children with conduct disorder showed less activity. In fact, the more aggression and antisocial behavior they were known to exhibit, the greater their level of brain abnormality.
• The study appeared in the journal Archives of General Psychiatry.

The second study, this time from the University of Nottingham, found differences in the type of brain waves among people who have brothers or sisters with schizophrenia.

• The researchers used electroencephalography or EEGs from 30 teenagers who had siblings with schizophrenia and compared them with 36 teenagers who did not.
• The differences that show up in the EEG are also related to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.
   

Children who have a history of child abuse, as recorded by a government child protection agency, are much more likely to suffer from anxiety and mood disorders, and to abuse substances, according to a new study in the Archives of General Psychiatry.

• Researchers from the University of Otago-Wellington in New Zealand went through records from a national child protection agency and found 221 children with a history of maltreatment.
• After comparing them to about 1900 young adults with no such history, the researchers found a ten-fold higher incidence of posttraumatic stress syndrome, as well as greater odds of other anxiety and mood disorders, and drug abuse among the abused children.

"This implies that targeted mental health interventions with present or past clients of child welfare agencies are indicated, in addition to interventions currently provided to stop or reduce maltreatment, and that concerted strategies are required to address the needs of many children who experienced maltreatment," according to the study.
 

Only 20 percent of teenagers have meaningful relationships with coaches, mentors or adults other than their parents, according to a survey from the Search Institute.

Researchers surveyed 1,860 people ages 15 years old from area of Twin Cities, Minnesota. Although 50% could identify one or more adult who "understands me," most of their relationships with these adults were not meaningful.

"Caring adults beyond the immediate family really do matter for a variety of outcomes that Americans care about, including school success," said Peter Benson, president and chief executive officer of the Search Institute, a policy center for child and family development. He said that teenagers show more academic achievement and hope for their futures when they have positive adult role models in their lives.
 

Teenage sex offenders have the same level of social competence as non-offenders, according to a new study from the University of Lethbridge in Canada.

• Professor Martin LaLumiere and his colleagues analyzed 59 previous studies of more than 3,800 male sex offenders, comparing them with non-offenders in the same age group, 12 to 18 years old.
• Sex offenders tended to have been sexually abused as children and to have atypical sexual interests, and they were more likely to feel socially isolated.
• However, the teens sex offenders had about the same degree of social skills and the same number of family problems as non-offenders.
• Dr. LaLumiere said that although social skills training is often included in their rehabilitation, it is probably unnecessary.
• The researchers concluded that prevention of childhood sexual abuse might be a better strategy toward reducing sex crimes among young people.

The study appeared in the journal Psychological Bulletin.
 

Teenagers with asthma are twice as likely to commit suicide as are non-asthmatic teens, according to a new study from Taiwan.

• Dr. Chian Jue Kuo of the National Taiwan University studied 162,766 people ages 11 to 16 years old over a 10-year period.
• The researchers found a correlation between having asthma and committing suicide.
• Teens with asthma had a 2.3 higher risk for suicide; the more severe the asthma, the more likelihood of suicide.

The study appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
 

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has release a report revealing significant changes in rates of substance abuse among pregnant teenagers.

The report analyzes available data from 1992 to 2007 for pregnant teens who entered substance abuse programs.

“According to the report, the proportion of pregnant teen admissions for marijuana abuse more than doubled from 19.3 percent in 1992 to 45.9 percent in 2007. Marijuana has surpassed alcohol as the primary substance of abuse cited in admissions for pregnant teens.” [Source: DocuTicker]

On a more positive note, alcohol abuse among teens dropped nearly as much as marijuana abuse increased – falling from 44.1 percent in 1992 to 20.3 percent in 2007.

Is your child a bully? If asked directly about their kids’ behavior, few parents would readily admit that anything’s wrong. But in surveys, more than 70 percent of teenagers say they’ve been bullied at school. Someone’s doing it. Could it be your child?

“The family is Ground Zero for learning about emotional responses and relationships. If a parent consistently yells or uses verbal threats, emotional blackmail or physical violence to manipulate family members, that’s what the child learns. And that learned aggression is likely to come to school with him/her.” [Source: More Marin (CA)]

Similarly, if your child is demanding, aggressive or otherwise unkind at home, chances are she’s like that at school, too. Be careful, however, not to label your child as a “bad kid”. Address his negative behaviors, but make sure he knows that you believe he can be a better person.

Cape Coral, Florida has a unique approach to dealing with young people who break the law. If convicted of a crime, the youth get probation and other punishments, but they also get regular visits from a member of the J-CRIME unit: Juvenile Crime Reduction Initiative through Mentoring Monitoring and Enforcement.

“J-CRIME is composed of a group of 12 officers that conduct checks on juveniles to make sure they’re following the terms of their probation… Sergeant Joseph Zalenski of the Cape Coral Police Department explained, ‘The officer isn’t just there to enforce the law, they’re trying to become a role model.’” [Source: WZVN (FL)]

Youth crime has decreased since the start of the program, and law enforcement officials hope the trend will continue.

Some studies have found that teenagers, more than any other age group, are prone to chronic depression and suicide. Parents should know the risks and signs of depression in teens.

“Chronic depression has been shown to be at least partially genetic. Depression is a chemical condition. When an individual is depressed, their brain fails to produce certain chemicals that would normally allow for a happier state of mind. These chemicals are controlled by structures in the brain that are passed down the family line.” [Source: Jacksonville Parenting Examiner]

In addition, women are more prone to depression than men; especially severe depression. Other factors include a child’s personality (how does she handle stress?) and stressful life events like the death of a loved one or even a poor test grade.

A new study out of Finland has found that teens who engage in cyberbullying, and the teens they bully, are more likely to suffer from emotional and mental health issues. The research team surveyed over 2,200 teenagers for their study.

“Compared to teens who didn’t engage in [cyberbullying], they were also more prone to suffering from emotional, concentration and behavior problems. In addition, they had trouble getting along with others and often suffered from hyperactivity and conduct problems. Cyberbullies also frequently smoked or got drunk, reported headaches, and were more prone to not feeling safe at school…” [Source: Health Day News]

Cyberbullying victims have similar behavioral and emotional issues, and are also more likely to come from broken homes. Though the study found a connection between these issues and cyberbullying, it didn’t find a conclusive cause-and-effect relationship.