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A quarter of girls and nearly one in 10 boys show signs of depression at the age of 14, say UK researchers.<\/p>\nA quarter of girls and nearly one in 10 boys show signs of depression at the age of 14, say UK researchers.<\/p>\n
The government-funded study<\/a> of over 10,000 young people looked at how many experienced the signs of depression not a clinical diagnosis of one.<\/p>\n Being from a poorer background or being of mixed or white ethnic background appeared to raise the risk.<\/p>\n Surveys with their parents, however, suggested many were not attuned to the true anxieties of their children.<\/p>\n Parents often underestimated daughters’ stress and had concerns about sons that the boys themselves did not voice.<\/p>\n Lead investigator Dr Praveetha Patalay, from Liverpool University, said teenagers, and particularly girls, were facing more mental health difficulties than previous generations – although the study did not look at this.<\/p>\n Many factors could be contributing, including exam stress and worries about body image, experts believe.<\/p>\n However, the rise could also be down to a greater willingness to acknowledge mental health problems by society.<\/p>\n The Millennium Cohort Study survey suggests: * 14-year-olds from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to report depressive symptoms than peers from better-off families<\/p>\n * Girls from mixed and white ethnic backgrounds are the most likely to report high depressive symptoms<\/p>\n * Black African girls are least likely to report high depressive symptoms at this age<\/p>\n * For boys, those from mixed and other ethnic groups are at greatest risk of depressive symptoms<\/p>\n * Bangladeshi and Indian boys are the least likely to report these symptoms<\/p>\n * Agreement between self- and parent-reported emotional symptoms of 14-year-olds is weak<\/p>\n Half of all cases of adult mental illness start by the age of 14, and it is important they are diagnosed and treated early. Read more<\/a><\/p>\n
\n* Teenage girls report more anxiety and depressive symptoms than boys<\/p>\n