When talking about child abuse, we often discuss issues of emotional and psychological scarring. However, there isn’t a lot of talk about how children’s brains are altered because of early maltreatment. In two separate studies, researchers have found sufficient evidence that even children who seem to have no psychiatric disorders left over from their experiences still leave with a few scars.

One study published in Current Biology sought to find out how children who were abused in one form or another were different from those who came from healthy families. The researchers gathered 43 children together and used Magnetic Resonance Imaging to scan their brains as they looked at pictures of people with angry, sad, or neutral expressions. Twenty of the children (aged 11 to 13) who were exposed to maltreatment showed increased activity in the amygdala and anterior insula as they looked at the angry faces. This same reaction was seen in soldiers who had combat experience.

While this has been said to increase awareness when it comes to perceiving threats, there are long-term side effects which aren’t as helpful. In due time, the children might suffer from stress anxiety as well as post-traumatic stress disorder.

In another study, researchers looked at the brain activity of teens who were aged 12 to 17. Some of the subjects have been recruited from an earlier study which identified them at birth to be at risk from parental neglect. They were then asked to talk about their experiences on maltreatment, and while they appeared to have escaped the worst psychiatric disorders, their brain activity revealed alarming changes as well.

According to research, those who suffered from maltreatment showed less gray matter in the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for self-control and planning; the amydgala, which is responsible for many different types of emotion; and the striatum, which is responsible for motivation and pleasure. Gender also appears to play a role in the way the brain is affected. Girls exposed to abuse were much more likely to fall into depression while boys have been found to be more prone to substance misuse disorders.


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(Photo by Capture Queen ™ via Flickr Creative Commons)