The brains of children are affected by family violence in the same way as combat affects soldiers, according to a study. In bothcases the brain becomes increasing wary of potential threats. 1Children who suffer abuse or witness domestic violence are knownto be at greater risk of anxiety and depression in late life. 2 Scientists carried out magnetic resonance imaging brain scanson 20 London children with an average age of 12 who have been 3exposed to documented violence at home. All had referred to local 4social services. While in the scanner, the children were shownpictures of male or female faces with sad, calm or angry 5expressions. Their patterns of brain activity were compared withthat of 23 matched children with no history of family violence. 6The children exposed to violence responded in the distinct way to 7angry faces, the study found. Their brains showed heightened activation in two regions associated with threat detection. Previous research has shown a similar pattern in the brains of soldiers exposed to violence combat situations. The scans suggest both combat veteran soldiers and children who witness violence tuning their brains to be hyper-aware of environmental danger. 8 Lead author Dr Eamon McCrory, from UCL's Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, said: "We are only nowbeginning to understand how child abuse influences function of the 9brain's emotional systems. This research is important because itprovides with our first clues as to how regions in the child's brain 10may adapt to early experiences of abuse in the home."