Two new studies about young children reveal that:

• Only 1 in 4 children in California who need mental health care receive treatment, despite the fact their families have health insurance to pay for it.
• Preschoolers who suffer from depression will likely continue to experience it throughout childhood; however spotting it early can make treatment more effective.

It can be hard to imagine young children having mental health issues, but they do just like the rest of us. For infants and toddlers, though, it’s easier to view mental health through the lens of social and emotional development. That’s because healthy social and emotional development in young children is dependent on their loving and supportive relationships with parents and other caregivers. When children are not receiving the loving care they need, and even worse, when they experience persistent trauma or abuse, they are likely to exhibit behaviors that might be perceived as mental health issues.

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