New research has found that young carers tend to have higher levels of depressive symptoms than young people who do not provide care to others.
The research, which was carried out at the Study of Anxiety, Stress and Health Lab in University Limerick’s (UL) Department of Psychology, along with Family Carers Ireland, looked at young carers aged 14-18 years from across Europe and Ireland.
Professor Stephen Gallagher, director of the UL Study of Anxiety, Stress and Health Lab, said that when young carers reported higher levels of social participation, they were more satisfied with their lives and felt less depressed.
“For example, when young carers had higher or comparable levels of social participation compared to those of a similar age, it increased their life satisfaction that protected against depressive symptoms,” Professor Gallagher explained.
“However, these protective effects were not evident at lower levels of social participation.
“Increasing social activities among young carers may be one way of helping them cope with the challenges of caring”.
Dr Jennifer McMahon, a lecturer in psychology at UL who was a co-author on the study, warned of the dangers of not treating these issues.
“When young people experience mental health difficulties that go untreated, they are at a greater future health risk compared to youths who do not have mental health difficulties and, as such, investment in activities to offset this risk is vital,” Dr McMahon said.
It is estimated that there are almost 67,000 young people in Ireland aged 10-17 who provide regular unpaid care for a loved one.
