How to Prevent Mental Health

Problems? Begin at the

Beginning With Infants and
Toddlers
Jun 3, 2015
By Matthew Melmed
Here's how we can identify mental health problems in
young children and effectively treat them.
This is excerpted from the second blog post in a three-part series exploring the mental
health needs of very young children. 

Preventing mental health problems means starting in the earliest years of life to
promote healthy social and emotional development, identify and address concerns as
soon as possible, and support those who surround young children.

A new report recently published in the shows a downward trajectory in severe mental
health issues for children between the ages of 6 and 17. On the surface, this is good
news. Yet on the flip side, the study also reveals a troubling pattern of young people
without access to mental health treatments from which they can truly benefit.
Lost in the narrative completely are the youngest set of children—specifically infants
and toddlers. With at more than three times the expulsion rate of students in
kindergarten through 12th grade, it’s clear that the mental health needs of infants and
toddlers can no longer be overlooked. It’s time we took a serious look at infant and
early childhood mental health and strategies to prevent mental health problems before
they start.
 So how do we bolster positive mental health in young children and ensure that
challenges are detected early? The key is to integrate mental health prevention services
into the settings where children spend their time—at home, child care or the doctor’s
office. Here is how we can ensure this happens:

 Educate parents and caregivers about social and emotional development.

 When mental health concerns exist for young children, link parents to early
intervention programs in the community that are adequately prepared to screen for and
treat social-emotional difficulties in a two-generation, dyadic fashion.
 Screen parents for depression.
 Help pediatricians support infant and early childhood mental health.
 Ensure that child care providers are prepared to promote and support healthy
social and emotional development.
 Integrate mental health prevention strategies into other programs that serve
young children and their families.
 Implement early child care mental health consultation and other
promotion/prevention models.
Preventing mental health problems means starting in the earliest years of life to
promote healthy social and emotional development, identify and address concerns as
soon as possible, and support those who surround young children. There are ways to
identify mental health problems in young children, and to effectively treat them. Parents,
pediatricians, home visitors and child care providers can be the “first responders” to
mental health concerns. Catching problems early, and intervening before they become
more serious, will provide the best chance of helping all young children succeed and
lead healthy, happy lives.

AUTHOR

Matthew Melmed
Executive Director