Coming Up Short

Extreme anxiety may actually stunt children's growth.

By PT Staff, published on January 01, 1995 - last reviewed on August 30, 2004

No one imagines that anxiety is good for kids. Now comes news that it can actually stunt their growth.

Psychologists have known for some time that children who suffer severe emotional abuse often grow slowly or not at all, a condition called "failure to thrive." Today, a clearer picture of the connection between development and mental health is emerging, and Thomas W. Uhde, M.D., is tracking how even less severe anxiety problems -- such as panic disorders and social phobias -- might be associated with stunted growth in kids.

The evidence comes from several directions. Adults with panic disorder produce less growth hormone than normal controls when given substances that stimulate hormone release (caffeine is one). Nervous pointer dogs are not only chronically anxious and smaller than their normal littermates, but they have lower levels of IGFI, a molecule associated with growth hormone. And anecdotal observations suggest that anxious, undersized kids who are being treated with growth hormone often see an improvement in both their emotional and physical conditions.

All of which raises the question of causality. Might anxiety actually inhibit a child's stature? Or are short kids more likely to experience anxiety because of the premium society places on height?

Most likely a complex web of pathways is involved. "You have environmental issues, biological issues, and genetic issues," says Uhde, chairman of psychiatry and behavioral neurosciences at Wayne State University. "They're all important and they all interact."

Another complication is timing. At some stages of development, decreased hormone levels may have little effect. Other times growth is merely delayed.

The good news: the anxiety-development connection suggests that growth homone-deficient children with panic disorders might benefit from either cognitive or biological therapies.