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Teens With Headaches Report Increased Rates of Bullying, Suicidality
Adolescents who have been bullied or who have considered or attempted suicide may be more likely to experience frequent headaches than their peers who have not experienced bullying or suicidality, according to study results published online ahead of print in Neurology.
“Headaches are a common problem for teenagers, but our study looked beyond the biological factors to also consider the psychological and social factors that are associated with headaches,” said study author Serena L. Orr, MD, MSc, of the University of Calgary in Canada. “Our findings suggest that bullying and attempting or considering suicide may be linked to frequent headaches in teenagers, independent of mood and anxiety disorders.”
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More than 2.2 million Canadian adolescents, ages 12 through 17, were included in the observational study. Participants answered question about their headache frequency, mental health, peer victimization, and suicidality.
Some 11% of adolescents reported having frequent, recurring headaches, defined as one or more headaches per week. Meanwhile, 25% of participants reported being victims of frequent overt bullying, which spanned physical and verbal aggression as well as virtual threats, and 17% reported being victims of frequent relational bullying, such as exclusion, rumors, and having harmful information about them posted online. According to the study, 17% of participants reported considering or attempting suicide.
Analysis indicated that adolescents with frequent headaches were nearly 3 times more likely to have experienced bullying compared with their peers. Teens who had been bullied or had suicidal thoughts or attempts were nearly twice as likely to have frequent headaches. Teens with mood disorders were 50% more likely, and teens with anxiety disorders were 74% more likely, to have frequent headaches compared with peers.
A third of teens with frequent headaches had suicidal thoughts or attempts compared with 14% of teens without frequent headaches.
An association between gender diversity and frequent headaches dissolved after researchers adjusted for factors including being bullied or having a diagnosed mood or anxiety disorder.
“Though gender diverse teens appear to have a higher risk of frequent, recurring headaches, this association disappears after controlling for bullying, anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies, suggesting that perhaps gender diversity is not, in and of itself, related to frequent headaches, but that the psychosocial factors associated with it may explain this link,” said Dr Orr. “This is important information because these factors are preventable and treatable, and as such, must be examined further.”
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