London — NHS: Mental health problems among young people in the UK are rising

LONDON, 5 October /ATSH-AA/ – There has been a “real” rise in mental health problems in children and young people, with anxiety, depression, self-harm and eating disorders the most common problems, an expert in the field warned.

It is now “harder to be young”, given the economic and employment insecurity young people face, as well as the challenges that social networks present, Peter Fonagy, head of an independent review on mental health, ADHD and autism, told the BBC.

The review was requested less than a year ago by the then health secretary, Wes Streeting, who had expressed concern that young people were being overdiagnosed and “written off”.

Fonagy, 74, said anxiety, depression, self-harm and eating disorders are the most common mental health problems affecting children and young people.

His report on the issue is expected to be published later this week, while he said he is concerned that the debate around ADHD and autism will “overshadow” the broader mental health issue.

According to the BBC, more than 100 experts and families with experience of mental health problems have worked on the research together with Fonagy, who is also a clinical psychologist and an adviser to the National Health Service (NHS) in England.

He stressed that the report will conclude that the rise in mental health problems since the 1990s is “real”, with about one in four young people aged 16 to 24 facing such problems.

Meanwhile, NHS data suggest that the number of children and young people in contact with mental health services in England has risen by 50 percent over the last five years.

“It is harder to be young now”, Fonagy said, adding that his research “rejects the idea of a snowflake generation”.

“I am amazed by how they have adapted to an environment that is much more difficult than any I have known or experienced. Young people have to deal with problems that are completely different from those of the generations before them. They are much better prepared than their parents, even though they face a difficult world.”