Bullied children more likely to suffer from adult obesity and heart attacks
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Version 0 of 1. Children who are bullied at school are more likely to grow up to be obese and at greater risk of suffering a heart attack in later life, according to a new study. Having established a link in earlier research between childhood bullying and an increased risk of mental health problems, this latest report suggests bullying can have a serious and enduring effect on physical health, too. While many schools have effective programmes for preventing bullying, the report’s authors said there was still a tendency to neglect victims and they called for better support for the “many, many children” who suffer. The study by the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London found that children who were victims of bullying had higher levels of blood inflammation as adults which put them at greater risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes in later life. Researchers found that 26% of women who had been bullied in childhood were obese at the age of 45, compared with 19% who had not been bullied. If bullying was completely eliminated, researchers estimated it would prevent 12% of cases of obesity in mid-life among both women and men. Of those men and women who were bullied frequently, 20% had raised levels of a blood inflammation marker called C-reactive protein (CRP), which increases the risk of heart disease as a result of clogged arteries. Only 16% of adults who were not bullied as children had high CRP levels. The findings, which are published in the journal Psychological Medicine, were based on data from more than 7,000 men and women born in a single week in 1958 and tracked as part of a long-term child development study. Parents were asked whether their children had been bulled at the ages of seven and 11; more than a quarter (28%) said they were bullied occasionally, 15% were bullied frequently. Those children were subsequently given a health screening at the age of 45, which checked their weight and blood inflammation markers. Dr Andrea Danese, one of the authors of the report, said: “Taking steps to tackle obesity and high blood inflammation is important because both can lead to serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. “The effects of being bullied in childhood on the risk for developing poor health later in life are relatively small compared to other factors. However, because obesity and bullying are quite common these days, tackling these effects may have a real impact. “The main focus of prevention for age-related disease has traditionally been on unhealthy adult behaviours, such as smoking, physical inactivity, and poor diet. These are clearly important but our research highlights the need to trace the roots of these lifelong risk trajectories back to psychosocial experiences in childhood.” Senior author Prof Louise Arseneault said their report showed there was increasing evidence that being bullied in childhood by other children creates a “toxic stress”, which has a similar impact on a child’s life as being abused by an adult. “Our research has already shown a link between childhood bullying and risk of mental health disorders in children, adolescents and adults, but this study is the first to widen the spectrum of adverse outcomes to include risks for cardiovascular disease at mid-life. “Our findings show that being bullied in childhood does get under your skin. We should move away from the misconception that bullying is part of normal growing up and that it is acceptable. “If we reduce bullying behaviours and support the young victims we may be able to not only prevent mental health problems but also other medical conditions later in life. “Bullying is part of growing up for many, many children. While there are important school programmes that focus on preventing bullying behaviours, we tend to neglect the victims and their suffering. “I would recommend that professionals working with young children listen to young kids who have been bullied. We need to put in resources for the young victims and not ignore them.” The Department for Education said all schools were required by law to have a bullying policy aimed at preventing bullying among pupils. “Bullying of any kind is unacceptable. We have made clear to schools how it should be tackled and how victims should be supported,” a spokesperson said. “We trust teachers to put suitable policies in place and the best schools create an ethos to stop it from happening in the first place. Where it does occur, many directly commission their own pastoral support for their students, including counselling. “We are also providing just under £4m to a range of anti-bullying organisations to help schools develop strategies to tackle any problems and launched a £25m national prospectus grant programme, which includes work to address bullying in schools.” |