Friday, October 29, 2010: Recent Teen Mental Health and Substance Abuse News
Binge Drinking, Pot May Harm Teen Brains
“Even teenagers know that downing 12 beers in a single night isn’t good for their bodies and can be dangerous. But a new study suggests that routine binge drinking like this may cause mental problems — including a reduced ability to think — that can last long after the hangovers have worn off.” Read the rest of the story on CNN‘s website by clicking here.
Drunkorexia: Alcohol Mixes With Eating Disorders
“Diet blogs and studies describe a drunkorexic as someone who restricts food intake to reserve those calories for alcohol and binge drinking, and note that people are more susceptible to drunkorexia in college.” Read the rest of the story on ABC‘s website by clicking here.
Adolescence, Parental Disappointment and Parental Guilt
“Although children usually fear arousing parental disappointment (“I hate letting them down!”) and adolescents tend to manipulate guilty parents (“You need to make it up to me!”) the greatest impact of parental disappointment and parental guilt often arises after adolescence ends and young adulthood begins.” Read the rest of the story on Psychology Today‘s website by clicking here.
New Study: Family Dinners Help Prevent Teen Drug Use
“Based on a new report launched by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University, the parental engagement fostered during frequent family dinners is an effective tool to help keep America’s kids substance free.” Read the rest of the story by clicking here.
One in Five Adolescents Have Psychiatric Disorder
“Researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health have reported on the prevalence data on a broad range of mental disorders in a nationally representative sample of U.S. adolescents, which show that approximately one in five children in the U.S. meet the criteria for a mental disorder severe enough to disrupt their daily lives.” Click here to read the rest of this story from the Child Development Institute.
Parenting Part II: Know When Your Teen is Sending Signs of Depression
“”There are signs, but a lot of times parents are not very good at detecting them,” says Paula Clayton, medical director of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.One problem is that “a lot of the warning signs are very similar to typical adolescent angst,” says Courtney Knowles, director of The Jed Foundation, a non-profit group devoted to preventing suicide among college students.” Read the rest of this USA Today story by clicking here.