According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), nearly 20% of those aged 12 to 17 had a major depressive episode in 2022, highlighting the pandemic's severe impact on teen mental health.
The latest study published indicates that during the COVID-19 lockdown, teen girls' brains aged 4.2 years faster than expected—suggesting significant structural changes due to heightened stress and social isolation.
Researchers found that teen girls experienced accelerated aging across 30 regions related to social-emotional processing, while teen boys showed changes in just two regions linked to visual processing.
The findings raise important questions about the possibility of reversing these structural brain effects and understanding what this means for the mental health of teens moving forward.
Collection
[
|
...
]