Climate change and school work among biggest worries for pre-teens, poll finds

At least a quarter feel anxious about something every day

Many children also experience growing pains which can make the transition into adulthood even harder (Getty)

School work, the state of the planet and physical pain are among the biggest worries of children growing up today, a new poll has revealed.

The poll, taken by 1,000 participants aged seven to 15, found nearly a quarter felt concerned about something every single day.

For the younger participants, the pressures from school and forming friendships resulted in nearly half feeling “scared” at times about growing up, while nearly half of the older respondents felt “anxious” about wider world issues such as climate change.

A third also said they were worried about their future.

“The pre-teen years are undoubtedly a distinct and special times in children’s lives, but this change can understandably bring challenging emotions,” said clinical psychologist Dr Kate Mason, who specialises in the well-being of young people.

“It can bring tricky practical challenges to overcome as they let go of the comfort of childhood, while psychologically and emotionally developing their unique identities,” she added.

The poll, which was commissioned by Nurofen, found a fifth of those aged between 12 and 15 years also sometimes experienced certain types of physical pains.

Two-thirds dealt with headaches, while a fifth had discomfort from braces and more than half felt general body pain.

For nearly one in five, being in pain was cited as a worry and 77 per cent will turn to their parents when they are suffering physically.

The 1,000 parents who were also polled shared their view on the emotional impact of their child growing up, revealing at least one-fifth felt their children were becoming more independent and distant with age.

Nearly half said they worried about their children going elsewhere for advice and two-fifths struggled with “letting go” as their child grows up.

When it comes to managing their child’s pains, a third worry about their child getting the right dose of effective pain relief.

The difficult in-between ages has one in four parents reporting their child finds syrup too “childish”, while 40 per cent say their youngster struggles to swallow pain relief tablets.

As a result, more than a third have disguised their child’s pain medicine to get them to take it – 53 per cent used peanut butter and 67 per cent dissolved their medicine in orange juice.

Finding the right solution is a priority for parents, with half wanting to feel assured their child has the correct dose of medicine to last throughout the day.

“These poll findings are important to highlight the challenging times this age group goes through as they transition into adulthood, with so-called ‘growing pains’ being an issue,” said Marcella Christopherson, Nurofen senior brand manager at RB.

She continued: “It’s clear that finding a suitable product for pain relief is a priority for parents, which is why we’ve recently launched two products to help overcome some of the more practical challenges.”

SWNS