MD Magazine (6/2, Walter) reports researchers have “established how loneliness and disease containment measures” in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic “could impact the mental health of both children and adolescents.” For “the rapid review, the investigators examined articles published between 1946-2020, with 20% of articles double screened using a predefined criteria and 20% of data double extracted for quality assurance.” The review revealed that “social isolation and loneliness increased the risk of depression, as well as the possibility of anxiety at the time of loneliness, which was measured between 0.25-9 years later.” What’s more, the review found that “young people were as much as three times more likely to develop depression in the future due to social isolation, with the impact of loneliness on mental health lasting up to nine years later.” The findings (pdf) were published online in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Related Links:
— “COVID-19 Lockdown Having an Impact on Adolescent Mental Health, “Kenny Walter, MD Magazine, June 2, 2020