{
  "id": 11469606,
  "title": "Study Uncovers New Early Sign of Depression Risk in Children",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/study-uncovers-new-early-sign-of-depression-risk-in-children",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-02T15:10:43.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Newsweek",
    "slug": "newsweek",
    "url": "https://www.newsweek.com/study-new-early-sign-depression-risk-children-12516813"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new study from Binghamton University suggests that children's attention to facial expressions may serve as an early indicator of depression risk. Researchers found that children with a family history of major depressive disorder (MDD) displayed increased attention to sad faces as their depressive symptoms worsened, while children without such a history showed decreased attention to happy faces. These shifts in attention could potentially deepen depressive symptoms and undermine protective factors. The study, involving 242 children and their mothers over two years, utilized eye-tracking technology to monitor how children focused on neutral, happy, sad, and angry faces. The findings indicate that depressive symptoms do not uniformly impact all children, as some may become more drawn to sad expressions while others may pay less attention to happy ones. These patterns may provide valuable insights into the development of depression and vulnerability among children. Parents and caregivers should be vigilant for signs of depression in children, such as increased sadness or irritability, withdrawal from social activities, loss of interest in previously enjoyed pursuits, changes in sleep or appetite, and difficulty concentrating.",
  "summary": "The study reveals a subtle change in how children view faces that may signal growing depression risk before adolescence.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}