A social enterprise providing education and information to protect and enhance the mental health of young people
By Melinda Hutchings. Last week an intense debate erupted over Jennifer Hawkins appearing naked and unretouched on the cover of the current issue of Marie Claire – and whether she represents a role model for positive body image. Media personality Bianca Dye, who also posed nude for a recent issue of Madison, made the point [...]
An Australian study has found that girls are hitting puberty earlier. The study also found evidence to suggest that girls are just as aggressive as boys while in puberty. The study attributed the decrease in the age of onset of puberty to an increase in obesity in young women, which also resulted in the girls [...]
Almost half of under four-year-old Australian children suffer from untreated tooth decay while thousands of dollars are spent to treat the problem, the Australian Dental Association (ADA) has reported. ADA president Dr Neil Hewsen noted that while there was a steady decline in childhood dental problems over the last 20 years, the most recent figures [...]
A South Australian study has linked bullying to mental and psychosomatic health problems including headaches, anxiety and abdominal pain. The study of over 2,800 adults found that nearly 20% reported having experienced bullying at school, and those who reported being bullied reported poorer physical and mental health then those who had not been bullied. The [...]
You are sending a very strong message to your child when you agree to provide alcohol to minors. Most importantly, you are telling them to ignore the law - alcohol is an illegal drug for those under the age of eighteen. The laws are different across the country with New South Wales having the strictest [...]
An American study has linked insufficient sleep to depression in adolescents. The study of over 15,000 adolescents in years 7-12 looked at the relationship between set bedtimes and sleep duration and depression. The study found that teens who went to bed after midnight were 24% more likely to suffer from depression and 20% more likely [...]
An American study of sexting, the practice for teens to send nude or near-nude images of themselves via mobile phones, in 12-17 year olds found that the practice is not as common as widely believed. While the study found that 15% of teens with their own mobile phones have received sexts, only 4% had reported [...]
Results of the annual American National Institute on Drug Abuse survey Monitoring the Future were released yesterday, revealing the patterns of drug use and perception in young people in America. The survey of over 46,000 year 8, 10 and 12 students found that the use of many drugs including alcohol, methamphetamines, cocaine, hallucinogens and cigarettes [...]
A study examining cleanliness in childhood has found that children who grow up in ultra-clean environments may have an increased risk of a large range of diseases including heart disease. The study which used data from 3,327 Filipino families found that children who were exposed to more germs grew up to have a much healthier [...]
Last night I was watching TV and saw a news advertisement about young people and drug use. Over the top of an image or a group of young people was superimposed the words One third of all young people have used an illegal drug. That statistic sounds pretty scary for parents, and it is – [...]
