My son became very interested in medical things, especially neuroscience and neuroplasticity after his grandmother suffered severe memory loss after a routine surgery, and then cancer treatment and prevention about six months later when he was just five and in kindergarten and his dad was diagnosed with cancer.
In dealing with close relatives with serious medical issues he learned that even though he was just a little kid that he could do something because laughter was the best medicine so he made us laugh when things were very difficult.
We talked about carcinogens. His dad had been exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam which is a known carcinogen. Looking at lists of carcinogens caused more anxiety so we read about the immune system and antioxidants. This seemed to help him when he learned that he could limit his exposure to known carcinogens and make sure he ate a healthy diet. It is the feeling of not having any control at all over a situation that causes my son anxiety.
My son, now 14, also tells me that watching shows like Mystery Diagnosis causes him to have some anxiety and he wishes I would stop watching it.
