FEATURE WELLNESS MENTAL HEALTH IN TODAY’S TEENS Observations in the field O BY DR. CHRIS OSWALD (DC) COLBY BUCCI (MScPT) AND ANNA JAMES ver my 32 years of practice, I’ve seen around 20,000 dif-ferent patients, therefore, I’ve seen many different phys-ical conditions and of course, mental health issues, as well. What concerns me the most is the decline in adult and teen mental health over the last decade, but more importantly, the rapid decline in teen mental health since the onset of COVID-19. As a father of three daughters who were recently teenagers, and a son who is about to be a pre-teen, I’ve been observing what Generation Z is continuously being exposed to. I see a clear correlation between the generation’s suffering mental health and today’s toxic culture. As a chiro-practor and father, I want to do everything that I can to help mini-mize teen anxiety and depression. Here are some of my observations on the subject. Drugs and alcohol When teenagers are having a hard time processing something emotionally, they will often turn to drugs and alcohol for recreational use as a coping mecha-nism. Because their brains aren’t fully developed yet, substance use will accel-erate into substance abuse much faster in teens than it would adults. For teens with mental disorders, that transition is even quicker. In a 2016 study of 10,123 teens from the ages of 13-18 years old, it was found that alcohol and drug abuse were highest among the kids with prior anxiety and behaviour disorders. The prior disorders signif-icantly increased both the risk of the teens trying drugs and alcohol for the first time, and also their transition from use to problematic use. “The rule of thumb is that almost half of kids with mental health disor-ders, if they’re not treated, will end up having a substance use disorder,” ex-plains Sarper Taskiran, MD, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at the Social media influencers glamorize underage drinking and illegal drug use. DR. CHRIS OSWALD BSc, DC, owns and operates The Centre for Fitness Health and Performance in Toronto, Ontario. Dr. Oswald is also the founder and creator of MuscleCare, a product line ranging from topical ointments, to ergonomic pillows, to back supports. COLBY BUCCI BA (KIN), MScPT , is a managing partner of The Centre for Fitness Health and Performance in Toronto, Ontario. He believes in a whole system treatment approach, consisting of manual therapy, education, lifestyle advice and exercise prescription. ANNA JAMES earned her B.S. in public relations from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. She now writes blog posts and scientific articles under Dr. Chris Oswald for his company, MuscleCare in Toronto, ON 16 Chiropractic and Naturopathic Doctor October 2020 Child Mind Institute. Drug and alcohol abuse in teens is just as scary if not worse than it was ten years ago. Guest speakers at schools and programs similar to D.A.R.E. can only do so much when it comes to influencing today’s teens to make the right choice. Popular tel-evision shows like “Euphoria,” and social media influencers glamorize underage drinking and illegal drug use. It’s not uncommon for teenagers to be exposed to street drugs like ille-gal prescription pills, LSD, MDMA, cocaine, and mushrooms. On top of all that, it’s also normalized for rappers to write and talk openly about drink-ing “lean” for instance, which is a mixture of codeine cough syrup, soda, and hard candy. Adolescents with existing mental disorders like ADHD or bipolar dis-order can become aggressive and www.Cndoctor.ca Photo: © Irina Polonina / Adobe Stock
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