Depression Screening, Cholesterol Tests Should Start Young

Updated guidelines for U.S. pediatricians are calling for doctors to start screening for depression as early as 11 years old. The revamped recommendations also recommend that doctors start annually testing children for high cholesterol by the age of nine.

According to Pediatrics, the medical journal these recommendations were published in, the updated guidelines attempt to address several health issues that are affecting modern U.S. families.

One such issue, high cholesterol in young teens, is tied to an epidemic that the country has been facing for over a decade. According to the guidelines, the age requested for the first test is so young because hormonal changes make it difficult for professionals to get an accurate cholesterol reading once puberty begins to set in. The guidelines also explain that early assessments of cholesterol are important in the long run, because they can warn pediatricians about any genetic predisposition to heart disease or obesity and child may have. If caught early enough, the need to lower a high cholesterol count can also help enforce healthy eating habits in a teenager, significantly lowering their chances of getting heart disease in adulthood.

The guidelines also call for depression screenings to start early for the sake of preventative means. Preventing suicidal tendencies in the U.S. is still on the agenda list of many organizations, including the Centers of Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC). According to data collected by the CDC and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death for Americans, taking nearly 40,000 lives in 2010. Clinical and major depression symptoms are considered the leading causes of suicidal tendencies. The recommendations from Pediatrics reason that noticing depression as early as possible and taking preventative action, such as providing help through therapy or even medication can help cull these numbers. The recommendations want doctors to keep an eye out for depression as early as 11 because teenagers between 15 and 24 alarmingly make up over 10 percent of total annual suicides in the U.S. Approximately 0.5 percent of the annual suicides consist of children 14 and under, which is a number that most professionals would call far too high as well.

The Pediatrics recommendations were published on February 24.