Raising mentally and physically healthy children is a top priority for parents.
Unfortunately, approximately one out of every five American children develops a diagnosable mental health condition each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). However, there are natural ways to improve children’s mental health. Our pediatricians at Children’s Medical Center have some recommendations to help support your child’s mental wellbeing.
Promote a Healthy Diet
A healthy diet is critical to the healthy development of a young brain. Children should avoid consuming large amounts of sugar and caffeine. Instead, they should be offered fresh fruits, vegetables, low-fat dairy, and lean meats for protein. As parents, you should model good habits by limiting alcohol intake and smoking. Additionally, having routine mealtimes with the whole family encourages social interaction and a healthy diet, both of which are extremely important for good mental health.
Encourage Good Sleep Habits
Sleep is just as important for mental health as it is for physical health. Sleep deprivation can put anyone at risk for mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression, including children. Establishing bedtime rituals early on in life can help kids get the restful sleep they need. Turning off screens an hour before bedtime and making sure young children get at least eight hours of sleep nightly is crucial. Teens may require up to 10 hours of sleep.
Encourage Exercise
Research has shown that regular exercise has mental health benefits as well as physical benefits. Exercise releases “happy hormones” in the brain, such as endorphins and serotonin, which have anti-anxiety and mood-regulating effects, respectively. Limiting total screen time, including the computer, phone, TV, and video games, may be helpful to ensure children enjoy all the mental health benefits of exercise. Parents can get their children involved in sports they enjoy, or engage in family walks, biking, and other outdoor activities. Exercise can also be a helpful way to manage bursts of energy in children that have ADHD.
Open Communication is Key
Encourage open communication with your children. Focus on listening to your children’s problems and making sure they feel heard and not judged for the way they feel. Work together with your kids to find solutions to school and relationship problems. If a child is reluctant to talk much, provide a journal so they can write out their feelings and frustrations. Doing so can help them process their emotions even if they don’t want to talk about them.
Watch for Signs of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
Even if you do everything you can to promote your child’s mental health, it is still possible that they can develop a mental health condition. It is important to know the signs that their condition may be getting worse. Falling grades, poor appetite or overeating, listlessness or outbursts of anger, insomnia or sleeping too much, lack of interest in friends and activities they once enjoyed, talk of self-harm, and isolation are some behaviors that indicate your child may not be doing well mentally. If these symptoms last more than two weeks, make an appointment for a check-up with your pediatrician. Early intervention delivers the best long-term results, and the sooner the problem is diagnosed and treated, the sooner your child can start feeling better.
Mental Health Support
We believe that your child deserves personalised treatment for their mental health problems, Here is a list of links for children’s mental health support in the UK:
- Young Minds – https://youngminds.org.uk/
- Childline – https://www.childline.org.uk/
- NSPCC – https://www.nspcc.org.uk/
- The Mix – https://www.themix.org.uk/
- Place2Be – https://www.place2be.org.uk/
- CAMHS – https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-child-and-adolescent-mental-health-service/
- MindEd – https://www.minded.org.uk/
- Kooth – https://www.kooth.com/
- Papyrus – https://www.papyrus-uk.org/
- Samaritans – https://www.samaritans.org/