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Stone Mountain School
Stone Mountain boarding school for boys is a long-term residential school in an outdoors environment. Stone Mountain is a boarding school that specializes in pre-adolescent and teen boys with attention deficit disorder, hyperactivity, emotional issues, learning differences or disabilities, or behavioral problems. The rustic wilderness environment in North Carolina serves as an excellent teaching tool for boys with ADHD / ADD through direct experience. Specialty boarding schools offer boys with ADD a safe, structured environment in which they can thrive and succeed both academically and socially.
Three Studies Find Links Between Genetics and Adolescent Behaviors
Three new studies point to a link between problematic teen behaviors, genetics and physical differences in brain function.
The first, published in American Sociological Review, links genetic differences with juvenile delinquency. Researchers at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill studied 1100 boys in grades 7 through 12 and found three genetic variations that govern behaviors like aggression and motivation.
They then linked these "risky genes" to environmental factors such as having meals with parents, attending church, repeating a grade in school, etc. Certain behaviors like eating meals with parents seemed to suppress the risky genes, and others -such as repeating a grade at school-- seemed to trigger them.
Lead author, Professor Gang Guo, said his study by no means backs up the argument that "the genes do it."
A study from the University of Utah printed in Plos Genetics found that having certain common genetic variations increases the chances of a teen using tobacco before age 17 and developing a lifelong dependency on it.
Those who carry the variations only have a 5% chance of quitting smoking as adults, according to lead author Professor Robert Weiss. He and his colleagues used smoking diaries from 2827 European-Americans.
Glen Hanson, a former director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse, called the Utah study "an incredible discovery. This isn't the answer but it opens the door to where we might find answers."
Finally, a study of adolescent monkeys found that certain ones are physically "wired" to feel anxious and afraid even in safe situations. "Anxious monkeys" had increased activity in the amygdala of their brains, even in secure situations.
These findings from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine indicate that certain people may be unable to stay calm because they are "wired" for anxiety. The study, which appears in Plos One, notes that scientists have already proven that anxious children are at risk for depression, substance abuse and anxiety disorders.
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