Teenage Girls and Depression

I was talking to a doctor the other day who said depression can be a learned behavior. I thought that was interesting. So when it's a learned behavior, can you 'unlearn' it and avoid medication? I wonder. And how do you tell the difference between depression that's a learned behavior and depression that is a chemical imbalance that needs to be medicated? Depression seems to be so common. This story looks at depression among teenage girls. If you have a teenager girl, now may be the time to talk to her about depression to make sure she isn't hiding these thoughts.

FROM THE WASHINGTON POST:

Teenage girls may be more susceptible than boys to recurring depression

THE QUESTION Even after treatment, depression sometimes comes back. Among teenagers, what might contribute to this recurrence?

THIS STUDY analyzed data on 196 teens who had been treated for depression at an average age of 14. By random assignment, they took the antidepressant fluoxetine, received cognitive behavioral therapy (a type of talk therapy aimed at learning to counter negative thinking), took the drug and had therapy in combination or took a placebo. After three months, teens taking the placebo who had not recovered could switch to another treatment group.

Within a five-year span, 96 percent of the teens were deemed symptom-free. However, in that time, about 47 percent had a recurrence of depression, girls more often than boys (57 vs. 33 percent). Teens who had an anxiety disorder along with depression were also more likely to have depression return (62 vs. 42 percent). Though the combination of antidepressant and talk therapy had been the most effective short-term treatment, it had no effect on whether teenagers had a recurrence.

WHO MAY BE AFFECTED? Teens with depression. Each year, an estimated 2 million American youths 12 to 17 years old have at least one major depressive episode. About two-fifths of them receive treatment.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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More recalled medicine

I wonder if Johnson & Johnson will continue to see sales drop due to these massive recalls. It certainly makes me nervous as a parent. I think I have the Benadryl too. I thought I was finished dealing with all the medicine recalls.

FROM NBC: Johnson and Johnson has recalled more children's medicine. The medication was manufactured at the company's McNeil Consumer Healthcare Plant in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania plant before it temporarily closed because of other problems.

You may remember -- this was the same plant that recalled thousands of children's and infants' Tylenol and other medications because of quality issues. The latest recall includes about 4-million packages of children's Benadryl tablets and about 800-thousand bottles of junior-strength Motrin caplets.

The company says there have been no reports of problems with the product and they do not pose any safety risk to consumers. You do not need to return them to the store if you already have them. According to the company, the products were made without rigorous manufacturing practices.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Are you having an acne emergency? Soderstrom Skin Institute can help. We treat acne seriously and in most cases will see you within a week. Evening and Saturday appointments are available. Call 309-674-SKIN and make your appointment today.

Cold and Cough Medicine ER Visits

This is a good thing!

FROM NBC: The voluntary withdrawal of over-the-counter cold and cough medicine has helped keep infants out of the emergency room.

Anew study from the CDC looked at ER visits for adverse reactions to cold and cough medicine in kids under the age of 12 -- both before and after the 2007 withdrawal. While the overall number of cases remained steady, visits by kids under age two went down fifty percent.

In a majority of cases a young child went to the ER because they took the medicine when their parents weren't looking.

Here's more on the decline from WebMD

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Are you having an acne emergency? Soderstrom Skin Institute can help. We treat acne seriously and in most cases will see you within a week. Evening and Saturday appointments are available. Call 309-674-SKIN and make your appointment today.

What age for orthodontics?

My 7-year-old only has two permanent teeth and he is already VERY crowded. I can't imagine what it will be like when he has all his adult teeth. There is just no room. So we already know he will need braces. I was trying to figure out WHEN he will need braces. It seems to be quite the controversy.

The American Association of Orthodontists recommends an orthodontic evaluation by the age of 7. That is probably because some kids may need them that early. For example, kids with a crossbite may be need braces while they still have baby teeth. The controversy comes in when kids who have very common problems-like crowding-get braces before their adult teeth are in.

New research shows that could mean the child will end up with braces for four years instead of two and the parents will pay double for the treatment. There may be no benefit to starting early in these cases. I certainly don't want to pay for braces twice, so we are waiting until his permanent teeth are all in (around 10-years-old) unless our dentists thinks he needs them sooner. Then I will get a second opinion. I can totally see how parents would jump at the chance of getting their kids' braces over sooner and sparing them embarrassment in the tween-teen years. As the old saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Here's more on the orthodontic dilemma from The New York Daily Times.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

Are you having an acne emergency? Soderstrom Skin Institute can help. We treat acne seriously and in most cases will see you within a week. Evening and Saturday appointments are available. Call 309-674-SKIN and make your appointment today.