Is this a new reality or an attempt by interested parties to create panic and receive more government funding for research and treatment! Quite possible a bit of both and more of the latter!
Are the criteria for the diagnosis of a mental-health disorder in children and adolescents too broad and vague? Quite possible!
Research fragmentation and poor integration of research and healthcare are definitely in need of improvement! However, this has been noted for decades!
Some of the things mentioned are simply common sense measures known for centuries! However, these ancient common sense approaches may have been lost on modern self absorbed parents in urban and digital environments if not deserts with limited or poor human interactions! Thus rediscovery of such common sense is highly recommended! Let children play, discover, and explore! The more, the merrier!
"Worldwide, at least 13% of people between the ages of 10 and 19 live with a diagnosed mental-health disorder, according to the latest State of the World’s Children report, published this week by the United Nations children’s charity UNICEF. It’s the first time in the organization’s history that this flagship report has tackled the challenges in and opportunities for preventing and treating mental-health problems among young people. It reveals that adolescent mental health is highly complex, understudied — and underfunded. ...
Anxiety and depression constitute more than 40% of mental-health disorders among young people (those aged 10–19). UNICEF also reports that, worldwide, suicide is the fourth most-common cause of death (after road injuries, tuberculosis and interpersonal violence) among adolescents (aged 15–19). In eastern Europe and central Asia, suicide is the leading cause of death for young people in that age group — and it’s the second-highest cause in western Europe and North America. Sadly, psychological distress among young people seems to be rising. One study found that rates of depression among a nationally representative sample of US adolescents (aged 12 to 17) increased from 8.5% of young adults to 13.2% between 2005 and 20171. There’s also initial evidence that the coronavirus pandemic is exacerbating this trend in some countries. ...
Moreover, the research itself suffers from fragmentation — scientists involved tend to work inside some key disciplines, such as psychiatry, pediatrics, psychology and epidemiology, and the links between research and health-care services are often poor. This means that effective forms of prevention and treatment are limited, and lack a solid understanding of what works, in which context and why. ...
Worldwide, the most common treatment for anxiety and depression is a class of drug called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, which increase serotonin levels in the brain and are intended to enhance emotion and mood. But their modest efficacy and substantial side effects have spurred the study of alternative physiological mechanisms that could be involved in youth depression and anxiety, so that new therapeutics can be developed. ...
For example, researchers have been investigating potential links between depression and inflammatory disorders — such as asthma, cardiovascular disease and inflammatory bowel disease. This is because, in many cases, adults with depression also experience such disorders. Moreover, there’s evidence that, in mice, changes to the gut microbiota during development reduce behaviours similar to those linked to anxiety and depression in people. That suggests that targeting the gut microbiome during adolescence could be a promising avenue for reducing anxiety in young people. ...
By contrast, researchers have found that improving young people’s cognitive and interpersonal skills can be more effective in preventing and treating anxiety and depression under certain circumstances — although the reason for this is not known [this is hilarious]. For instance, a concept known as ‘decentring’ or ‘psychological distancing’ (that is, encouraging a person to adopt an objective perspective on negative thoughts and feelings) can help both to prevent and to alleviate depression and anxiety ... although the underlying neurobiological mechanisms are unclear. ...
It’s uncommon — but increasingly seen as essential — that researchers working on treatments and interventions are directly involving young people who’ve experienced mental ill health. These young people need to be involved in all aspects of the research process, from conceptualizing to and designing a study, to conducting it and interpreting the results (????). Such an approach will lead to more-useful science, and will lessen the risk of developing irrelevant or inappropriate interventions. ..."
Young people’s mental health is finally getting the attention it needs The COVID-19 pandemic, a UNICEF report and a review of the latest research all highlight the urgent need for better prevention and treatment of youth anxiety and depression.
