Golf Club at Hilton Head Lakes

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BS, University of South Carolina, JD, University of Dayton, School of Law,

2020 Hilton Head Island Bluffton Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program Graduate

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MENTAL HEALTH from page 16A problems also have depression. She also shared the somber fact that the top three causes of mortality in people ages 15 to 24 are accidents, suicide and homicide.

Kirkland spoke about the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study that is being conducted at 21 sites across the U.S., including at MUSC in Charleston.

In a phone interview after the forum, Kirkland said the study involves almost 12,000 children who are now between the ages of 12 and 13. It began when the participants were ages 9 and 10, and will span about 10 years.

Funded by the National Institutes of Health, the study tracks the biological and behavioral development of participants from adolescence into young adulthood using brain imaging, biological samples, cognitive tests, interviews, questionnaires and the use of Fitbits, Kirkland said.

“The end goal is to translate all of this data into either prevention or intervention treatment,” Kirkland said.

So far, Kirkland said researchers have gathered some important information, including the following:

• At the first visit, 33.7% of participants met the criteria for an anxiety disorder, 18.8% met the criteria for ADHD, and 14% met the criteria for oppositional defiant disorder.

• At the first visit, 9.7% of participants were taking some kind of psychiatric medication.

• At the first visit, 15.4% of participants were receiving some kind of treatment for mental health problems.

• Mental health problems, including depression, anxiety and impulsive behav- ior, were negatively correlated with sleep duration – so higher levels of mental health problems were connected to shorter sleep time.

• Mental health problems in the parents were also correlated with short sleep duration in their children. Depression symptoms had the strongest relationship with sleep problems.

• Screen time has increased from four hours daily in 9- to 10-year-olds to more than seven hours daily in 12- to 13-yearolds.

• Substance use experimentation, such as having a sip of alcohol in a non-religious setting or taking a puff of either cannabis or nicotine, increased from 23.1% at ages 9 and 10 to 39.7% at ages 12 and 13.

• Substance use initiation, such as drinking a standard alcoholic beverage or trying more than just a puff of cannabis or nicotine, increased from 1.1% at ages 9 and 10 to 7.4% at ages 12 and 13.

“One thing that I read one time was that kids aren’t adults with just fewer miles on them,” Kirkland said. “They are at a unique point in their lives, and they are doing the best they can with what they have. Our job as parents, educators, guardians, mentors, what have you, is to help them grow and develop, and to do that as safely as possible.”

For more information on the LowCountry Alliance for Healthy Youth and to find mental health resources, visit lcahealthyyouth. com. For more information on the ABCD study, visit abcdstudy.org.

Amy Coyne Bredeson of Bluffton is a freelance writer, a mother of two and a volunteer with the Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance.

Meet our Editor

LYNNE COPE HUMMELL, EDITOR

Lowcountry resident for 37 years

A native South Carolinian, Lynne hails from the capital city of Columbia, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of South Carolina. She moved to Hilton Head Island in 1984 for a typography job, not even realizing there was a beach. The next year, she met Amos, the man who would become her husband and soul mate. They married in 1990 on one of the beaches they discovered. A frequent crosser of the bridges to Bluffton, Lynne worked at the local daily for nine years and has been with the Sun since 2009. While her job is editing, she also enjoys writing, and is confident there is a novel in her head somewhere. ENJOYS: Waterfalls, good coffee, hanging out with the fam.