The Strange Symptom Of Childhood Depression
Depression is a difficult disease in any situation, so when it appears in childhood it tends to be alarming. Childhood depression, although it appears to manifest itself mainly through sadness and depression, has other, less common symptoms. For example, aggression has been found to be a sign of depression. Similarly, in the case of children, a study found a strange symptom.
In this regard, researchers from Duke University have found that one of the most frequent problems of children could be a sign of depression. We refer to the taste in food, which in children is already complex in itself. According to the researchers, those children who choose carefully what to eat and only have preferences for certain foods could suffer from childhood depression .
Childhood depression and feeding problems
As we have said, it is normal for children to be problematic about food. This is why we choose foods carefully and try to make them more attractive and easier to eat. Despite this, not all children eat well and on schedule. For this reason, it is not easy to think that it could be a symptom of something more serious like depression.
At the same time, it should be noted that this type of behavior is not always linked to problems of this type. That is to say, not all cases of children with eating difficulties are depressed. In this respect, specialists pointed out that the formation of taste takes time. For this reason, a study was needed to determine the link between these patterns.
Anxiety and depression, what are the differences?
Duke Center of Eating Disorders director Nancy Zucker explains that children are more sensitive than adults. Also, some babies are even more sensitive. This has the consequence that their adaptation process generates in them more stress in the face of even simple aspects.
The child’s short temper when eating to some degree may be normal. However, this study determined that such behavior is linked to severe anxiety and depression.
Likewise, feeding time creates stress in the child due to his condition, which is bad for him and his family. This has the consequence that this becomes the most difficult time of the day, which can have negative effects in the future; that is, the difficulty in eating can generate depressive and anxiety disorders in adulthood.
Until now, researchers have not identified a pattern that determines this behavior. For this, we must not already begin to be alarmed. Not all children with selective eating problems suffer from childhood anxiety and / or depression. At the moment it seems that there is a greater incidence in cases where the time of the meal becomes unbearable.
According to the researchers, this has a lot to do with our parents’ attitudes to these situations. For example, when we try to force them to eat or are very strict about what they should eat. Many times these episodes are characterized by shouts, threats, punishments and arguments. In this sense, the situation becomes more stressful for the child, possibly affecting the development of childhood depression.
Possible Effects of Childhood Depression
The child suffering from depression can be affected in a number of ways. In this case, not only is there a psychological risk, because his diet is also compromised. Because they don’t eat everything or struggle to eat adequate amounts of food, they are prone to developing diseases.
Possible effects are also generated in the social sphere, because the child does not behave well at the table. Likewise, people other than their parents struggle to care for a child who doesn’t eat everything. People who are selective with food are not always well understood, which is why they may find it difficult to relate in the future.
It is common for these children to develop a certain fear of consuming certain foods. This is due to an increase in the protection system against poisoning, a biological process that naturally exists in all people. It means that there is an alteration of a natural system of the organism. For this reason, these children have a disorder that leads them to worry excessively about foods that they consider risky.
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