Latest news with #MarkBellis
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
‘You Feel Like You're Good For Nothing': The Behaviour Hurting Kids As Much As Physical Abuse
Experiencing childhood verbal abuse shows a similar impact to mental health in adulthood as physical abuse, according to a study published in the BMJ Open. Verbal abuse alone was linked to a 64% increase in the likelihood of low mental well-being in adulthood, while physical abuse was linked to a 52% increase, the study found. Experiencing both types of abuse more than doubled the risk of poor mental health later in life. The research also revealed rates of verbal abuse have been rising since the 1950s, increasing from 12% to nearly 20%. Physical abuse, meanwhile, has declined significantly – having halved from 20% to 10%. Professor Mark Bellis, lead author of the study and Director of Research and Innovation at Liverpool John Moores University, said: 'Our research shows that verbal abuse in childhood may inflict mental health scars as deep and enduring as those caused by physical abuse. 'Important progress has been made in reducing physical abuse, but verbal abuse is often overlooked. This study suggests verbal abuse has risen in the latter half of the 20th century eroding the long-term mental health benefits we should see from reducing physical abuse.' Two in five children (41%) have experienced verbal abuse from the adults around them, a survey by the charity Words Matter previously found. Parents, carers, teachers, friends' parents, and activity leaders were the primary sources, the poll of 1,000 young people aged 11-17 years old found. The impact of verbal abuse Verbal abuse can affect a child's self-esteem and confidence, their future potential, and ability to function at home, school, the workplace and in social situations. It has also been linked to poor mental health – the new study linked it to lower mental well-being in adulthood – and can even change the normal workings of the brain. Words Matter's survey revealed that toxic language can leave children feeling sad, depressed and humiliated. One girl, aged 16, who took part in the survey, said: 'I carry this fear with me that everything adults say about me is true.' An 18-year-old boy added: 'If a parent says you're useless, it makes you feel like you are good for nothing.' In addition, 46% doubted themselves, 46% felt anxious, 45% felt ashamed, 44% felt embarrassed, 32% felt isolated and 23% felt frightened as a result of verbal abuse. The most hurtful words and phrases for children Children were asked what words were the most hurtful and upsetting. The top five are: 'You're useless' 'You're stupid' 'You can't do anything right' 'You're worthless' 'I'm ashamed of you' The most helpful words and phrases for children Positive words can have a huge impact on a child's feelings about themselves. According to the children surveyed, the top five most helpful and encouraging words are: 'I am proud of you' 'You can do it' 'I believe in you' 'I'm here for you' 'It's OK to make mistakes, you can learn from them' Nearly two thirds of children said hearing these words and phrases made them feel encouraged, happy, good about themselves, loved/liked, and confident. Responding to the latest study, Jessica Bondy, founder of Words Matter, said it 'confirms what survivors and professionals have long known: words can wound deeply and have a lasting impact on a child's mental health and development'. She continued: 'We all get overloaded sometimes, but too many are turning to harsh words without realising the lasting damage they cause to children. Any gains made in reducing physical abuse risk being undone by rising rates of verbal abuse. 'We must act now to confront the lasting harm caused by cruel, critical, or controlling language. We need to build children up – not knock them down. The mental health of the next generation and our shared future depend on it.' Help and support: - free and confidential support for young people in the UK - 0800 1111 , open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393. offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI - this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill). (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) offer a helpline open 5pm-midnight, 365 days a year, on 0800 58 58 58, and a webchat service. is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email help@ offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0808 801 0525 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on Related... 'Help! I'm Worried My Child Won't Stand Up For Herself' Should Kids Give Up Train Seats For Adults? Commuter's Comments Divide Parents Parents Are Cracking Eggs On Toddlers' Heads For Views – And It's As Mean As It Sounds
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Childhood verbal and physical abuse leave similar impacts, study shows
Cruel words can leave a mark on a child –– and may have as much of an impact as physical abuse, new research has found . People who experienced physical abuse as a child were at a 50% increased risk of reporting low mental health in adulthood compared with those with no abuse, according to the study published Tuesday in the journal BMJ Open. Those who experienced verbal abuse had a 60% increase in likelihood of low well-being. The prevalence of physical abuse in people in England and Wales has halved, from 20% in people born from 1950 to 1979 to 10% in those born in or after 2000, according to the study. Verbal abuse, on the other hand, has increased. In the United States, more than 60% of people participating in the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Youth Risk Behavior Survey reported experiencing emotional abuse and 31.8% reported physical abuse. The survey listed emotional instead of verbal abuse, but asked about similar behaviors as the most recent study. In this latest analysis, researchers analyzed data from more than 20,000 adults across seven different studies in England and Wales. The study team evaluated childhood experiences using the Adverse Childhood Experiences tool and components of adult mental health using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale. The 'results suggest that verbal abuse in childhood can leave mental health scars as deep and long-lasting as those caused by physical abuse,' said lead study author Dr. Mark Bellis, professor of public health and behavioral sciences at Liverpool John Moores University in the United Kingdom. What is verbal abuse? Across the United States and the world, there has been an epidemiological shift of a greater burden of verbal abuse across populations, said Dr. Shanta Dube, professor of epidemiology and director of the department of public health at the Levine College of Health Sciences at Wingate University in Wingate, North Carolina. She added that emotional abuse is 'often tied to the act of verbal abuse and therefore verbal abuse can often get lost.' The rise of verbal abuse amid the decline of physical abuse highlights a need to raise awareness around spoken abuse, especially given the lasting impact, said Dube, who was not involved in the study. 'Verbal abuse may be eroding the mental health benefits we should expect from successful efforts to reduce physical abuse,' Bellis added. It can be hard to draw the line for sure on what language is harsh and what is verbal abuse, but it can include blaming, insulting, scolding, criticizing or threatening children, said Dr. Andrea Danese, professor of child and adolescent psychiatry at King's College London and adjunct clinical professor at the Yale Child Study Center. He was not involved in the research. 'Think about the use of derogatory terms or statements intended to frighten, humiliate, denigrate or belittle a person,' he said. 'It is often unintentional.' Comments can sound like 'Johnny can do it. Why can't you?' 'You always make mistakes,' 'You're stupid,' or 'You're worthless,' Dube said. 'Harsh, denigrating words spoken to children have lasting impacts. Children developmentally are concrete thinkers 'it is or isn't,' she said in an email. 'They can take things literally.' Children rely on the language of the adults in their immediate environment to learn both about themselves and the world, Danese said. Therefore, the way children are talked to can be very powerful in both positive and negative ways, he added. 'Being the subject of verbal abuse can twist a young person's understanding of who they are and their role in the world,' Danese said. Is it the impact or how you remember it? The study relies on observational data, meaning that researchers cannot say for sure that verbal abuse in childhood causes poorer mental health in adulthood, only that there is a connection between the two. It could be that people who experience verbal abuse in their younger years have trauma later, but it also could be that adults with worse mental health are more likely to remember their childhood more harshly, Danese said. However, the sample size was large enough and the approach was strong enough to add to the existing evidence around impacts of verbal abuse, Dube said. Language has power –– good and bad It is increasingly important that researchers and individuals pay attention to the factors that impact long-term mental health, Bellis said. 'Poor mental health is a major and growing global public health issue, particularly among adolescents and young adults,' he said. Part of the decline in physical abuse may be attributed to more awareness, data collection and campaigns focused on its reduction over the years, Dube added. 'Improving childhood environments can directly enhance mental well-being as well as helping build resilience to protect against the future mental health challenges individuals may face through adolescence and adulthood,' Bellis said in an email. 'We need to ensure that the harms of verbal abuse are more widely recognised.' Parents and caregivers with more information and support may be better equipped to create better home environments for their children, he said. 'This means helping build emotional regulation skills in parents and children, helping catalyse emotional attachment between them, developing their communication skills and encouraging modelling behaviours in parents so that they demonstrate the type of approaches to problems that they would like to see in their children,' Bellis said in an email. But the issue doesn't stop with parents –– all adults who interact with children need to understand the impacts of verbal abuse, Dube said. And the answer isn't just to shame adults, Danese said. Instead, he and other researchers are looking to support a cultural shift toward everyone being more mindful about the language used toward children and how it might affect them. 'It's not about dramatising times when we could have let negative comments on children slip,' he said in an email. 'It is about being mindful of them and trying to repair them with an apology, a correction, and an explanation.' Editor's note: If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, help is available. Dial or text 988 or visit for free and confidential support.
Telegraph
5 days ago
- Health
- Telegraph
Verbal abuse ‘as bad as hitting your children'
Suffering verbal abuse at home can be as damaging to children's mental health as being physically hit, researchers have warned. Under the Children Act 2004, it is illegal to cause actual or bodily harm to a child, and smacking can only be used by parents if deemed a 'reasonable'' punishment. But researchers at Liverpool John Moores University said that verbal bullying was also linked to long-term mental problems, and called on Britain to catch up with other counties which have banned the degrading or psychological abuse of children. The analysis of 20,000 children found that 16 per cent of those who suffered no abuse had poor mental health in adulthood but it rose to 22.5 per cent for those who had been physically abused and 24 per cent for those mentally abused. And it increased to 29 per cent for children who experienced both physical and verbal abuse. 'We need strong protections' Prof Mark Bellis, of the Public Health Institute at the university, said: 'Countries like Sweden and Germany have already embedded strong protections for children into their legal systems. 'These laws explicitly prohibit psychological harm, degrading treatment and humiliating measures, and set a high standard for child welfare and protection. 'More nations need to follow this lead but legal reform alone isn't enough. We must also equip families with the skills to prevent verbal and emotional abuse.' The study also found that while the physical abuse of children has dropped significantly in recent years, verbal abuse has risen. Around 20 per cent of children born between 1950 and 1979 suffered physical abuse compared to 10 per cent among those born in 2000 or later. But the reverse was true of the prevalence of verbal abuse, which rose from 12 per cent among those born before 1950 to around 20 per cent amongst those born in 2000 or later. Physical abuse can exert lifelong effects on mental and physical health and wellbeing, note the researchers. It is known to bring higher levels of anxiety and depression, problematic alcohol and drug use, other 'risky' behaviours, violence towards others and serious health issues, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes, they say. Verbal abuse is a source of toxic stress, which may affect the neurobiological development of children, the experts believe. 'Parents need guidance' Prof Bellis added: 'Our findings suggest that while physical abuse has declined in the decades spanning the end of the 20th century, verbal abuse has increased. 'Although our study cannot determine the reasons behind this shift, it's important to ensure we are not simply replacing one form of childhood trauma with another. 'That's why it's critical not only to tell parents what not to do, but also to offer practical guidance and support on how to raise children in healthy, nurturing ways.' Researchers say policies and initiatives to prevent violence against children have tended to focus on physical abuse, often overlooking the potential impact of verbal abuse, they point out. Those born in or after 2000 had higher likelihoods of all individual poor mental wellbeing components as well as overall low mental wellbeing. And men were more likely to report never or rarely feeling optimistic, useful, or close to other people, while women were more likely to report never or rarely feeling relaxed. The research was published in the journal BMJ Open.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
Mental health impact of childhood verbal abuse explained in new study
Verbal abuse of children could be as damaging to their mental health in adulthood as physical abuse, researchers have found. A study of more than 20,000 adults in England and Wales found that people exposed to verbal abuse in childhood were likely to feel disconnected, pessimistic, and emotionally unwell in later life. Adults who were physically abused as children had a 52 per cent higher chance of experiencing low mental wellbeing, and this stood at around 64 per cent for those who had been subjected to solely verbal abuse. Being exposed to both types of abuse compounded the risk even further, at 115 per cent higher, the study led by Liverpool John Moores University found. While verbal abuse did show as having a marginally higher impact in this study, the researchers said the difference was not statistically significant and that further studies would be needed perhaps with a larger sample size to confirm the validity of the difference. Lead author, Professor Mark Bellis, who is director of research and innovation at the university, said: 'Our research shows that verbal abuse in childhood may inflict mental health scars as deep and enduring as those caused by physical abuse. Important progress has been made in reducing physical abuse, but verbal abuse is often overlooked.' The study, published in the BMJ Open, also suggested the prevalence of verbal abuse has risen in recent decades 'eroding the long-term mental health benefits we should see from reducing physical abuse'. The authors worked alongside Bangor University and Public Health Wales to pool data from seven relevant studies, involving 20,687 adults from England and Wales and looking at birth cohorts from the 1950s onwards. They found that the prevalence of child physical abuse halved from around 20 per cent among those born between 1950 and 1979 to 10 per cent among those born in 2000 or later. But when it came to verbal abuse, the prevalence rose from 12 per cent among those born before 1950 to around 20% among those born in 2000 or later. The researchers said an estimated one in six children endure physical abuse, primarily from family members and caregivers, but one in three are subjected to verbal abuse. Jessica Bondy, founder of Words Matter, an organisation focused on ending childhood verbal abuse by adults said: 'This study confirms what survivors and professionals have long known: words can wound deeply and have a lasting impact on a child's mental health and development. We all get overloaded sometimes, but too many adults are turning to harsh words without realising the lasting damage they cause to children. 'Any gains made in reducing physical abuse risk being undone by rising rates of verbal abuse. We must act now to confront the lasting harm caused by cruel, critical or controlling language. We need to build children up – not knock them down. The mental health of the next generation and our shared future depend on it.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
The mental health impact of childhood verbal abuse explained in new study
Verbal abuse of children could be as damaging to their mental health in adulthood as physical abuse, researchers have found. A study of more than 20,000 adults in England and Wales found that people exposed to verbal abuse in childhood were likely to feel disconnected, pessimistic, and emotionally unwell in later life. Adults who were physically abused as children had a 52 per cent higher chance of experiencing low mental wellbeing, and this stood at around 64 per cent for those who had been subjected to solely verbal abuse. Being exposed to both types of abuse compounded the risk even further, at 115 per cent higher, the study led by Liverpool John Moores University found. While verbal abuse did show as having a marginally higher impact in this study, the researchers said the difference was not statistically significant and that further studies would be needed perhaps with a larger sample size to confirm the validity of the difference. Lead author, Professor Mark Bellis, who is director of research and innovation at the university, said: 'Our research shows that verbal abuse in childhood may inflict mental health scars as deep and enduring as those caused by physical abuse. Important progress has been made in reducing physical abuse, but verbal abuse is often overlooked.' The study, published in the BMJ Open, also suggested the prevalence of verbal abuse has risen in recent decades 'eroding the long-term mental health benefits we should see from reducing physical abuse'. The authors worked alongside Bangor University and Public Health Wales to pool data from seven relevant studies, involving 20,687 adults from England and Wales and looking at birth cohorts from the 1950s onwards. They found that the prevalence of child physical abuse halved from around 20 per cent among those born between 1950 and 1979 to 10 per cent among those born in 2000 or later. But when it came to verbal abuse, the prevalence rose from 12 per cent among those born before 1950 to around 20% among those born in 2000 or later. The researchers said an estimated one in six children endure physical abuse, primarily from family members and caregivers, but one in three are subjected to verbal abuse. Jessica Bondy, founder of Words Matter, an organisation focused on ending childhood verbal abuse by adults said: 'This study confirms what survivors and professionals have long known: words can wound deeply and have a lasting impact on a child's mental health and development. We all get overloaded sometimes, but too many adults are turning to harsh words without realising the lasting damage they cause to children. 'Any gains made in reducing physical abuse risk being undone by rising rates of verbal abuse. We must act now to confront the lasting harm caused by cruel, critical or controlling language. We need to build children up – not knock them down. The mental health of the next generation and our shared future depend on it.'
