Prague, Nov 4 (CTK) – One in ten Czech children under 13 years suffers from depression, according to a study worked out by the children’s psychiatric clinic of Charles University in Prague, daily Pravo wrote Wednesday.
Moreover, the number of children suffering from psychological problems has been rising in the Czech Republic. Some school children must even take antidepressive drugs, Pravo says.
If depression is not diagnosed and treated in time, it may lead to tragic consequences, such as suicide, the daily adds.
Five to ten children aged under 15 years and about 40 aged from 15 to 19 annually commit suicide in the Czech Republic. However, the number of suicide attempts is much higher, Pravo writes.
The bad psychological condition of Czech children is also reflected in the high incidence of anorexia, mainly among girls, and pathological addiction to computers among boys.
According to experts, there are more “computer addicts” than drug addicts in the country.
Children´s psychological troubles may have various reasons and some of them are even inherited. However, the most frequent place where children face a threat is their family, the daily writes, referring to the study.
Last year, children were most frequently maltreated at home (52 percent) and by their own parents (49 percent), shows a poll conducted by European safety lines for children in need.
Children´s serious psychological problems are most often caused by their´ parents´ discord, divorce, lack of attention and understanding and too high demands imposed on them, Pravo writes, citing a few examples.
On the contrary, children need a harmonious and calm family environment, demands corresponding to their age and skills as well as openly expressed love, understanding for their problems and attention of their parents. A normal communication in the family and interesting joint programmes for weekends are much better than buying a state-of-the-art computer for children, experts agree.
