How the separation of immigrant children from their parents destroys their brains.

The Trump administration’s new policy on the violent separation of children and their parents causes irreparable damage to many of the children and is a “great injustice,” doctors said on Friday.

Photos: CNN / Instagram

Medical groups have unanimously condemned a policy that, they note, is not defined in any US law. They believe that, in addition to injury, stress can damage brain development.

“Any forced separation is very difficult for children and can cause lifelong trauma, and also increases the risk of other mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder,” says Dr. Alta Stewart of the American Psychiatric Association.

“Many families crossing the US border are fleeing war and violence in their home countries and struggling with the effects of stress and trauma. These children deserve our protection and should remain with their families when they seek asylum,” she added.

The Department of Homeland Security said Friday that from April 19 to 31 this May 1 995 children were separated from their parents.

This happens when parents are detained on charges of illegally crossing the border. At the same time, children are considered as “unaccompanied minors” and are placed under the care of the Ministry of Health and Social Services. They are placed in temporary detention centers or foster families for a time until the government decides what to do with them further.

In April, Colleen Kraft, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, met some of the detained children.

“It’s really heartbreaking,” she said. “The first room we walked into was the baby room and there was a little girl in there who wasn’t even two years old. She was just sobbing and inconsolable.”

Employees told Kraft that they were forbidden to physically reassure children.

Photos: CNN / Instagram

“And we all knew the problem was that her mom wasn’t around. And she wanted to see her mother. And none of us could fix it. This is more than just sadness,” Kraft added.

“We know that separating children from loving caregivers promotes toxic stress in the brain,” Craft said. “There are certain patterns of stress that lead to changes in brain architecture in children and can cause young children to be developmentally delayed.”

"It can also cause physical symptoms," says Dr. Ana Maria Lopez, president of the American College of Physicians.

“The reasons for the impact on life range from behavioral issues and mental health trauma to human physiology,” she said.

“This can increase the risk of chronic diseases, cardiovascular disease and even cancer,” Lopez added. “From a health perspective, this approach is really harmful.”

Health professionals at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health signed a letter stating that policies violate international conventions.

“These family separations violate the most widely ratified human rights convention, the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” said the letter, signed by the school’s dean, Ellen McKenzie, vice dean Joshua Sharfstein and others.

They challenge the administration’s argument that children treat potential immigrants like any other criminal.

The American Academy of Family Physicians also condemned the policy. “We stand with our medical colleagues in calling on the federal government to abandon its policy of requiring the separation of children from their caregivers and instead prioritize supporting families and protecting the health and well-being of the children in those families,” they said. “If you have a 2-year-old child who is crying because he misses his mother, he is probably not a human trafficker.”

Read also on ForumDaily:

To cheat and stay: how does the fake visa industry in the US

As in the US fighting for the program to protect illegal immigrants

What may change in American immigration policy

Do you want more important and interesting news about life in the USA and immigration to America? — support us donate! Also subscribe to our page Facebook. Select the “Priority in display” option and read us first. Also, don't forget to subscribe to our РєР ° РЅР ° Р »РІ Telegram  and Instagram- there is a lot of interesting things there. And join thousands of readers ForumDaily New York — there you will find a lot of interesting and positive information about life in the metropolis.