Harvard Gazette: Childhood abuse hurts the brain

Childhood abuse hurts the brain

By William J. Cromie
Gazette Staff

Abuse during childhood can change the structure and function of a brain, and increase the risk of everything from anxiety to suicide.

"These changes are not limited to physical and sexual abuse; there's growing evidence that even verbal assault can alter the way a developing brain is wired," says Martin Teicher, associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. The ominous effects are tied to reduction in the size of sensitive areas of the brain and to abnormal brain waves that mimic epilepsy.
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