YOUNGSTERS WORRIED

Australia's Dr Phil, Melbourne psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Greg, worries about adolescent worrying:

Quoting recent research by the Australian Childhood Foundation, he says adolescents, usually defined as aged between 12 and 24, worry about everything from being body image to going to war.

"A third of the kids were really frightened that one day they would actually have to fight in a war,'' Carr-Greg says.

"Forty seven per cent were worried about the way they look, just over half were terrified of being bullied in the school, 35 per cent worry they are overweight, and 41 per cent said that they felt that they weren't doing well enough.

The antipodean Dr Phil somehow manages to ignore the most prominent findings of the ACF report, as noted in the media release "New study shows children fear environmental disaster":

The report, ‘Children’s fears, hopes and heroes – Modern Childhood in Australia’, surveyed 600 10-14 year-olds across Australia and revealed that:

• 52% are scared that there will not be enough water in the future

• 44% of children are worried about the impact of climate change

• 43% of children are worried about the pollution in the air and water

Maybe adolescents are worried because they're being told to worry.