Teenage brains aged rapidly during the coronavirus lockdown

Social isolation and the restrictions imposed by health measures during the global crisis have been found to have accelerated the process of cortical thinking - a natural development that occurs with age and is hastened by stress.

Data shows that girls were more severely affected, as their brains aged by 4.2 years over the course of the pandemic compared to 1.4 years for boys.

Scientists at the University of Washington think that female brains were impacted more as they place a higher value on social interactions compared to males.

Dr Patricia Kuhl, senior author of the study, said: "Teenagers really are walking a tightrope, trying to get their lives together.

"They're under tremendous pressure. Then a global pandemic strikes and their normal channels of stress release are gone. Those release outlets aren't there anymore, but the social criticisms and pressure remain because of social media.

"What the pandemic really seems to have done is to isolate girls. All teenagers got isolated, but girls suffered more. It affected their brains much more dramatically."

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