The Government of Canada is committed to improving the health and mental wellbeing of children and youth in Canada. Early childhood experiences influence a child's mental health for life-and with 70% of mental health and substance use problems having origins in adverse childhood experiences, understanding how to better identify and treat young children at risk of developing or living with a mental health issue is crucial.
Today, Rachel Bendayan, Member of Parliament for Outremont, on behalf of the Honourable Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health, announced the Government of Canada, through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), is providing over $680,000 to Dr. Isabelle Ouellet-Morin of the University of Montreal to study how harsh parenting may affect socioemotional and behavioral problems in children.
Dr. Ouellet-Morin's work will focus on measuring stress levels in preschool aged children who are part of the Growing Up in Quebec Study-a sample of 4,500 children followed by the Institut de la statistique du Québec. When parents try to control or shape the behaviour of their very young children when they misbehave or act out through harsh parenting practices-such as the frequent occurrence of expressed anger, yelling or spanking-there can be long-term impacts stemming from stress hormones released into the developing brain. Additional research in this area will help advance knowledge about how harsh parenting affects child well-being, and in which context these associations are amplified-an important step in finding ways to mitigate these impacts.
This research funding builds on the investments made by the Government of Canada in Budget 2023, including an investment of nearly $200 billion over 10 years to improve health care services for Canadians, reduce surgical backlogs, support health workers, and improve integrated mental health and substance use services. We will continue to do whatever it takes to ensure that all Canadians, including children and youth, have the mental health and substance use supports they need and deserve.
