A child who comes from a loving home is more likely to grow up into an adult who can trust other people, have good relationships and cope with life's problems.

A happy, healthy child

A happy, healthy childhood is important for later mental health (Photo: Rosa Hoekstra)

Children who experience physical, emotional or sexual abuse have a much higher risk of developing a mental illness as an adult. Children can also suffer from the effects of bullying. Bullying is when other children say nasty things or are physically violent towards a child.

Can you now think of some ways that you could:

  1. help to prevent child abuse from happening
  2. reduce bullying in your community?
Show answer

You can

  1. Educate the community about the importance of a happy, healthy childhood, e.g. by holding an awareness-raising meeting.
  2. If you have the chance to speak in a school, you can tell the teachers that (1) bullying is common; (2) bullying can lead to mental illness in the child or later when they grow up; (3) it is important to identify when bullying is taking place and do something about it. You can encourage the school to make a plan for dealing with bullying and supporting the child who is bullied.
Last modified: Thursday, 17 July 2014, 12:37 AM