Medical experts have established that there are certain physiological differences between depressed children depending on the level of abuse they may have experienced before they were 5 years old.
Researchers from the University of Minnesota explain that children who were abused, neglected, or maltreated in anyway will grow up dealing with a lot of stress. They also established that there is an abnormal levels of cortisol or stress hormones in the when someone experiences chronic stress.
The subjects of the study were children between 7 and 13 years old 50% of which were neglected or abused. The proponents explored the possibilities of abuses occurring early in life and how depression affected their cortisol levels.
The study found out that levels of depression were highest among kids who experienced abuse during their first fiver years of life compared to those who were not maltreated and those who were not abused early.
Children who were abused before 5 had compromised systems of adapting to stress. The study suggests that the early abuse could be more damaging to stress and emotion systems since it happens when the brain is at its peak development. As a result, children who were abused early may experience stress chronically and may be very wary even though they are not being maltreated.
In the United States, almost 2 million children are neglected and abused per year. The results of the study may be useful in providing recommendations for proper preventive interventions to help these abused children.