In 2020 alone, reports of anxiety and depression in adults increased by more than 25 percent compared to previous years. The new findings suggest that the pandemic's neurological and psychological impact on young people may have been even worse.

Many unanswered questions about the consequences of Corona for young people’s brains

“We already know from global research that the pandemic has impacted youth mental health. But we didn't know what, if anything, she was physically doing with her brains."

Ian Gotlib, Stanford psychologist

As teenagers grow older, brain structure changes naturally. During puberty and the early teenage years, the hippocampus in the amygdala grows, as do areas of the brain that control access to certain memories and help modulate emotions. At the same time, tissues in the cortex, an area involved in executive function, become thinner.

Chronic stress with consequences

By comparing MRI scans of 163 children taken before and during the pandemic, Gotlib shows that this developmental process accelerated in adolescents as they experienced the COVID-19 lockdowns. Until now, he says, these types of accelerated changes in “brain age” have only occurred in children who have experienced chronic adversity — whether from violence, neglect, family dysfunction or a combination of factors.

“It is not yet clear whether the changes are permanent. Will their chronological age eventually catch up with their 'brain age'? If their brains remain permanently older than their chronological age, it is unclear what the results will be in the future. For a 70- or 80-year-old, one might expect cognitive problems based on changes in the brain, but what does it mean for a 16-year-old if his brain ages prematurely?

Ian Gotlib, Stanford psychologist

Source:

Press release
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