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Brain scans suggest the pandemic prematurely aged teens’ brains

A small study finds rapid brain maturation in pandemic kids

A woman wearing a face mask stands inside a home, looking out through a window

Changes wrought by the pandemic during the last few years may have affected the development of adolescent brains.

Justin Paget/Digital Vision/Getty

By Freda Kreier

Living through the COVID-19 pandemic may have matured teens’ brains beyond their years.

From online schooling and social isolation to economic hardship and a mounting death count, the last few years have been rough on young people. For teens, the pandemic and its many side effects came during a crucial window in brain development.