According to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Bristol, there has been a sharp decline in the anxiety levels among young adolescents aged 13-14 as compared to the levels reported in October last year, as per the Hindustan Times report.

Researchers were taken by surprise to find significantly lower rates of anxiety in teenagers, especially considering the coronavirus pandemic.

For the study, researchers examined 1,000 secondary school children in South West England. This also revealed the negative impact of schools on young minds as they seem to be in a better mental space due to the prolonged closure of schools.

This comes as the UK mulls on the resumption of schools. Recently, the UK’s chief medical advisor said that children not going back to school will be more hazardous than the novel coronavirus.

He said in an interview with BBC: “The chances of children dying from Covid-19 are incredibly small” - but missing lessons “damages children in the long run.”

The announcement drove the researchers to examine secondary school-goers in the UK.

Emily Widnall, the lead author of the research, said in an interview with BBC: “With the whole world in the grip of a devastating pandemic, which has thrown everyone’s lives into turmoil, the natural expectation would be to see an increase in anxiety. While we saw anxiety levels rise for a few of our participants, it was a big surprise to discover quite the opposite was the case for many of them.”

comment COMMENT NOW