Health Alert: The teenaged brain
(Los
Angeles) May 26, 2004 - Jeff Taw coaches a soccer team of adolescent
girls and has teenagers of his own. He knows first hand how erratic
teenagers can be, "They tend to have a mind of their own, and
unfortunately usually about 15 different minds going in different
directions." Now, researchers have evidence that the teen brain, and not just raging hormones, could be to blame for the erratic behavior. Dr.
Paul Thompson, an associate professor at UCLA, says, "Teenagers are
not really famous for organizing themselves. They sometimes do things
that are pretty rash. This is partly because the frontal lobes that
actually control those actions are not done developing until their
20's." Dr.
Thompson helped to create the first ever time-lapse movie of the
developing brain. The images, made from MRI scans processed in a
super-computer at UCLA, show that the region of the brain responsible
for reasoning and problem solving is among the last to develop, "You
can actually see in these movies changes happening in the parts of
the brain that control emotion, inhibition, all of the things that
teens don't do particularly well."
Researchers spent a decade cataloging and scanning the brains of 18
children as they matured into adults. That is how they documented
that puberty brings on a major growth spurt in the frontal lobe of
the brain. Researchers
hope the findings will lead to a better understanding of why teenagers
may feel such angst. Emily Palmer, a 15-years-old, says, "Seriously,
'cause you don't know what to expect. You don't know what is going to
happen." They also hope
it will serve as a reminder for parents like Jeffrey Taw, "You have to
stay in touch, keep an eye on what they are doing." Even
when they seem hard headed, parents may need to provide structure,
organization, and decision making skills for teens whose brains are
still developing. Dr Thompson says, "The more structured things are for
teens, it will help them get on the right track." Researchers
are hoping that the study will lead to a better understanding of major
mental illnesses. Scientists believe that the development of the
teenage brain may explain the timing of schizophrenia and bipolar
disorder, which often begin in adolescence and contribute to the high
teen suicide rate. posted 11:27am by Chris Rees
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