CHILD
RAPE & ABUSE
Research Shows Abuse Changes the Brain
Childhood abuse and neglect may not only
affect a person's outlook on life, but could also result in permanent
physical changes to a child's developing brain.
According to News24.co.za, (January, 2001) new research in America shows
that such permanent physical changes could also cause psychological
problems in adulthood.
"The research shows that childhood maltreatment may produce changes in
both brain function and structure," says a lead investigator of the
research team.
"These changes are permanent and not something people can just get over".
The research team identified four abnormalities in the brain that were
much more prevalent in adults who had been abused and neglected as
children. The investigators found that adults, who were abused as
children, were more likely to experience epileptic seizures caused by
changes to the limbic system, a part of the brain that controls emotions.
"Emotions that accompany these seizures include sadness, embarrassment,
anger, explosive laughter usually without feeling happy, serenity, and
quite often, fear," says the spokesperson. The researchers also found that
abused children were twice as likely as non-abused children to have an
abnormal electroencephalogram (EEG)- a reading that measures electrical
activity of the brain. Also, abnormal EEGs were associated with increased
self-destructive behaviour and aggression.
Another change noted was deficient development of the left side of the
brain in adults abused as children, which, the researchers speculate, may
lead to depression and problems with memory. Unlike those who had not been
abused, abused children did not integrate the function of the left and
right sides of their brain, the report indicates.
The researchers suggest that this may be caused by a decrease in the size
of the bridge between the two hemispheres of the brain. "The trauma of
abuse induces a cascade of effects, including changes in hormones and
neurotransmitters (chemicals released by brain cells) that mediate
development of vulnerable brain regions," says the spokesperson.
"We know that an animal exposed to stress and neglect early in life
develops a brain that is wired to experience fear, anxiety and stress and
perhaps this is the same for people."