New research suggests teenage brains ‘aged’ during Covid lockdowns

Researchers at the University of Washington found that coronavirus lockdowns, such as school closures, canceled sports activities and stay-at-home orders, aged teenagers' brains up to four years earlier.

The new research, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, adds further evidence to how disruptions to daily routines can contribute to behavioral problems, an increase in eating disorders, anxiety and depression in adolescent girls and boys.

Scientists at the university's Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS) began the study in 2018, using MRIs to see how the brain structure of 160 Seattle-area teenagers developed over time. ...