One Teenager In 10 Has Attempted Suicide/Emotions Affect Immunity

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One Teenager In 10 Has

Attempted Suicide

By Emma Britton

The Mirror - UK 9

9-103

 

One teenager in 10 has attempted suicide because of stress, a new report

claimed yesterday.

 

Youngsters are now more worried about the problem than drugs, money or sex,

the author said.

 

The study of hundreds of secondary school children showed record stress

levels, with one in five saying they were " unbearably high " most of the

time.

 

Schoolwork and exams were the main cause followed by family conflict, youth

charity Young Voice found.

 

But those polled said schools failed to help them cope. Author Adrienne Katz

claimed more family-friendly working hours to let parents give children more

support would help ease the problem.

 

She added: " The reality is parents are often too exhausted to be there when

their children need them. "

 

More than half of teenage girls said they felt overwhelmed by schoolwork,

while boys said exams harmed their health.

 

When stressed, 15 per cent " smashed things " , 12 per cent smoked, nine per

cent picked a fight and six per cent turned to drugs or alcohol.

 

The survey also showed a quarter of young people worried about their health

by the age of 15.

 

Shirley Conran, of the Work-Life Balance Trust, said stress depressed teens

and wrecked potential.

 

She warned: " It is national suicide to let increasing numbers of our future

workforce simply fall by the wayside. "

 

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http://rense.com/general40/emtion.htm

 

Brain Study Shows How

Emotions Affect Immunity

By Roger Highfield

Science Editor

The Telegraph - UK

9-1-03

 

 

Sad, fearful and angry thoughts can weaken the body's protective immune

system and make it more vulnerable to disease, according to a brain scanner

study published today.

 

Researchers have long known that a link exists between psychological states

and immune response, notably between depression and vulnerability to a wide

range of diseases. However, the mechanism behind this link is poorly

understood.

 

Now a direct connection between brain activity and immune function has been

demonstrated in an experiment by a team at the University of Wisconsin,

Madison.

 

A paper by the team in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of

Sciences today pinpoints one of the mechanisms underlying the link,

revealing it to lie in the brain's prefrontal cortex. This region has long

been associated with emotions, as well as planning and awareness.

 

Dr Richard Davidson and colleagues asked 52 female subjects to recount

either the best or worst times of their lives by thinking and then writing

about these subjects.

 

As the subjects wrote, the researchers measured physiological indicators of

emotional reactions and used electroencephalograph recordings to measure

electrical activity in the brain.

 

Each participant was then given a flu shot, and flu antibody levels were

measured at intervals in the six months afterwards. Those subjects who

exhibited more intense negative emotions while recounting negative

experiences produced a weaker response to the vaccine, suggesting they had

impaired immunity.

 

While earlier studies had linked emotional and physical health, as well as

brain activity and emotion, Dr Davidson said none had established a direct

link between brain activity and immune function.

 

© Copyright of Telegraph Group Limited 2003.

 

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