Boarding Schools for Girls

U.S. youth between the ages of 5 and 19 are being medicated at record levels for a variety of conditions, with young girls showing the greatest increases, according to a report by researchers associated with the University of St. Louis, the Kansas Health Institute, and Express Scripts (a pharmacy benefit management company):

• The use of medication to treat Type 2 diabetes in young girls increased by 147 percent. (Among boys in the same age group, the increase was 39 percent.)


• Prescriptions for drugs to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder increased by 63 percent for adolescent girls, and 33 percent for boys.


• Among girls ages 15 to 19, antidepressant use increased by 6.8 percent. Use of similar medications among boys ages 15 to 19 decreased.

"Our study findings indicate that these increased levels of chronic medication use are symptoms of broader underlying issues affecting children today," Dr. Emily R. Cox, senior director of research at Express Scripts, said in a Nov. 3 university-issued press release.

"These trends are worrisome given that many of these therapies are treating conditions with modifiable risk factors and if not addressed, many of these children will carry these chronic conditions into adulthood," Cox said.

The study was published in the November 2008 edition of the journal Pediatrics.

Labels: medications, prescription_drugs

According to researchers with the RAND Corporation, teenagers who regularly view sexually explicit television programs are more likely to become pregnant or father a child before the age of 20 than are peers who aren't exposed to such shows.

"Our findings suggest that television may play a significant role in the high rates of teenage pregnancy in the United States," Chandra said in a Nov. 3 article in the Canadian newspaper The National Post. "We're not saying we're establishing causation, but we are saying this is one factor that we were able to prospectively link to the teen pregnancy outcome."

A Nov. 5 Medscape Today article by Marlene Busko provided the following highlights of the RAND study:

• 2,003 teenagers completed the baseline phone interview about television viewing in 2001, and 1,461 of the teens also completed two follow-up phone interviews, which were conducted in 2002 and 2004.


• The researchers focused on 23 television programs - including dramas, comedies, reality shows, and animated cartoons - that were widely available to (and popular with) teens, and which contained sexual content that included physical flirting, sexual talk, and intercourse.


• 718 participants had engaged in sexual activity by the third survey and reported data on pregnancy status.


• At the time of the third survey, 58 girls had become pregnant and 33 boys had fathered a child over the three-year period. This meant that 14 percent of those who had participated in the surveys had been involved in a pregnancy - almost double the 7.6 percent teen pregnancy rate in the general population.

"The study highlights the importance of helping teens become more critical consumers of television and other media that do not present a balanced portrayal of possible consequences of sex," Dr. Anita Chandra, the study's lead author, told Busko.

On its website, the RAND Corporation is described as "a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decision-making through research and analysis." The RAND research was supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, a component of the National Institutes of Health.

Labels: influences, sex, TV

A former Saturday Night Live star is taking her talents to the Internet in an effort to help boost the self-image and self-esteem of girls and young women.

Amy Poehler, whose SNL experience included five years behind the "Weekend Update" anchor desk, has created - and plans to star in - a web series entitled "Smart Girls at the Party." According to a release by On Networks (the digital media company that will produce the show), "Smart Girls" will range "from the serious to the hilarious" in its efforts to promote the power of positivity:

Smart Girls celebrates young girls who are changing the world by being themselves. The show aims to help girls find confidence in their own aspirations and talents.

In each episode, Amy Poehler interviews a girl with a unique talent, community interest or point of view. The conversation ranges from the serious to the hilarious. Girls offer witty truths and show that you don't have to be famous to be interesting or to make a difference in the world.

In a "Smart Girls" preview clip, Poehler said that her goal is to highlight "extraordinary individuals who are changing the world by being themselves." The program's premiere episode is scheduled for Nov. 17.

Labels: intelligence, media_influences, role_models

Ford Motor Company will soon begin offering "MyKey," a device that allows parents to monitor their teen drivers, in some of its vehicles. MyKey will not allow a driver to exceed a predetermined speed, will limit the volume of a vehicle's sound system, and will also make loud dings until the driver's seatbelt is buckled.

There are already several other devices on the market, such as Drive Cam, that allow parents to record their child's driving and track them via computer.

My Key will be standard equipment on Fords in 2010.

Labels: driving, safety

A study of 1,000 British men found that 48 percent believe that their male primary teachers had the most impact on their lives. Over 20 percent said their male teachers increased their self-confidence, and 35 percent said their teachers had encouraged them to work harder in the primary grades.

The results are significant because only 13 percent of British primary teachers are men.

Some psychologists have pointed out that with increasingly higher rates of single mothers raising boys, male teachers are often a British child's only male role model.

"Male primary school teachers can often be a stable and reliable figure in the lives of the children they teach," said Dr. Tanya Byron, a clinical psychologist and government advisor.

Labels: boys, teachers

There is no truth to the myth that that girls are "cattier" than boys, according to a new study from the University of Arizona. Researchers found that boys are just as socially aggressive as girls are, and that both sexes gossip, spread rumors, and intentionally exclude others from their cliques. Many in the field assume that boys are more likely to bully and pick fights in a physical way, but girls are more likely to express aggression verbally or in written communication.

Noel Card, assistant professor of family studies and human development, researched 148 previous studies involving 74,000 children. He and his colleagues found that certain children, especially boys, are more likely to be both socially and physically aggressive.

Professor Card linked physical aggression to problems such as delinquency, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, poor social skills, and lack of empathy. Social aggression was associated with depression and low self-esteem.

This study appears in the journal Child Development.

Labels: boys, gossip, social_skills

Suicide is the third-leading cause of death for young people ages 15 to 24. Lorel Humberg, counselor at Orangeburg Area Mental Health Center, says there are warning signs parents and friends should watch for.

"If a teenager or child says things like 'I just don't want to be here' or 'You'd be better off without me,' take it seriously," Humberg said. "If they suddenly seem to be so much better, that's when the dangerous time is. All of the a sudden, it's okay. That may mean that they've decided to go ahead with plans to end it, especially if they start giving away their favorite clothes and possessions."

Humberg also urges young people who are contemplating suicide to talk to an adult they trust. She calls suicide a "permanent solution to a temporary problem." The feelings of depression or hopelessness will pass, she said, but sometimes young people need help realizing the transitory nature of their emotions. Source: The Times and Democrat (South Carolina)

Labels: parents, suicide, teachers