According to WHO estimates, there are approximately 63 million people in India who are suffering from hearing impairment. Communication barriers can cause social isolation, exclusion, and discrimination,
New WHO policy brief highlights actions for countries Climate change: A serious risk to mental health and well-being New Delhi/ Geneva 3 June 2022: Climate change poses serious risks to mental health and well-being, concludes a new WHO policy brief, launched today at the Stockholm+50 conference. The Organization is therefore urging countries to include mental health support in their response to the climate crisis, citing examples where a few pioneering countries have done this effectively. What did the reveal IPCC? The findings concur with a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), published in February this year. The IPPC revealed that rapidly increasing climate change poses a rising threat to mental health and psychosocial well-being; from emotional distress to anxiety, depression, grief, and suicidal behaviour. “The impacts of climate change are increasingly part of our daily lives, and there is very little dedicated mental health support available for people and communities dealing with climate-related hazards and long-term risk,” said Dr Maria Neira, WHO Director, Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health. What does WHO define mental health? WHO defines mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) as “any type of local or outside support that aims to protect or promote psychosocial well-being and/or prevent or treat mental disorder”. WHO defines mental health as “a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to her or his community”. What are the mental health impacts of climate change? The mental health impacts of climate change are unequally distributed with certain groups disproportionately affected depending on factors such as socioeconomic status, gender and age. However, it is clear that climate change affects many of the social determinants that already are leading to massive mental health burdens globally. A 2021 WHO survey of 95 countries found that only 9 have thus far included mental health and psychosocial support in their national health and climate change plans. “The impact of climate change is compounding the already extremely challenging situation…
New Delhi, Oct 28: A new study has found that the common syndromes of severe mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, dementia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and addiction, may have an unusual evolutionary basis. The constant prevalence of mental illness across the history of the human species suggests a Darwinian paradox. Despite causing significant disease, there seems little impact on selection for fitness. Genetic variation that predisposes to psychiatric disease is seen across all populations and is quite common. Previous selection, over evolution, may produce a bias towards certain kinds of variation that may cause disease later in life. These mechanisms may protect against inflammation or infection when young, only to predispose towards disease when one is older. In the new study, researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurological Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, and Institute of Genomics at the University of Tartu, Estonia, explored these aspects through the genetic analysis of individuals from families who have multiple affected members, considering that the increased prevalence of illness in a particular family should point to even more extreme evidence of the risky alleles. The study compared the genetic sequences of exomes (the regions that are translated into proteins) from individuals in 80 such families and compared them against African and South Asian populations. They also looked for evidence of Neanderthal genes in the sample, as the persistence of these ancient genomes in modern humans seems to correspond to some traits as well as the risk of disease. “We observed evidence of selection in 74 genes, which were mainly involved in immunological and defence responses, including activation and regulation of interferon-gamma, cytokine and immune system, and different signalling pathways”, said Dr Ajai K. Pathak, one of the lead authors of the study. The study inferred that almost one-fourth, 20 out of the 74 putatively selected genes were implicated in the risks of illnesses such as schizophrenia, dementia, and Parkinson’s disease and general attributes such as intelligence and cognitive abilities. “There was also evidence of Neanderthal genes, but their variation and distribution were much the same in the south Indian population and did…
The world misses most 2020 mental health targets; extension of WHO Mental Health Action Plan to 2030 provides a new opportunity for progress COVID-19 highlighted the need for mental health support. New Delhi/Geneva, 10th October 2021: The World Health Organization’s new Mental Health Atlas paints a disappointing picture of a worldwide failure to provide people with the mental health services they need, at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic is highlighting a growing need for mental health support. The latest edition of the Atlas, which includes data from 171 countries, provides a clear indication that the increased attention given to mental health in recent years has yet to result in a scale-up of quality mental services that is aligned with needs. Issued every three years, the Atlas is a compilation of data provided by countries around the world on mental health policies, legislation, financing, human resources, availability and utilization of services and data collection systems. It is also the mechanism for monitoring progress towards meeting the targets in WHO’s Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan. “It is extremely concerning that, despite the evident and increasing need for mental health services, which has become even more acute during the COVID-19 pandemic, good intentions are not being met with investment,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. “We must heed and act on this wake-up call and dramatically accelerate the scale-up of investment in mental health because there is no health without mental health.” Lack of progress in leadership, governance and financing None of the targets for effective leadership and governance for mental health, provision of mental health services in community-based settings, mental health promotion and prevention, and strengthening of information systems, we’re close to being achieved. In 2020, just 51% of WHO’s 194 Member States reported that their mental health policy or plan was in line with international and regional human rights instruments, way short of the 80% target. And only 52% of countries met the target relating to mental health promotion and prevention programmes, also well below the 80% target. The only 2020 target met was a…
FIFA launches Reach Out campaign for better mental health #Depression affects more than 260 million people in the world while around half of all #mentalhealth conditions start by age 14. Geneva 2 August 2021: FIFA has launched #ReachOut, a campaign designed to raise awareness of the symptoms of mental health conditions, encourage people to seek help when they need it and take actions every day for better mental health. With the support of past and current football players, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), FIFA is underlining the importance of greater awareness around mental health. In launching #ReachOut, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, said: “This campaign is very important in raising awareness about mental health conditions and encouraging a conversation which could save a life. In FIFA’s Vision 2020-2023, we pledge our commitment to make football work for society, and I thank the players and Ms Enke, who have contributed to this important initiative. “Depression and anxiety affect rising numbers of people worldwide, and young people are among the most vulnerable. Having a conversation with family, friends or a healthcare professional can be key. FIFA is proud to launch this campaign, supported by the World Health Organization and ASEAN to encourage people to #ReachOut.” The campaign hears from FIFA Legends Aline, Vero Boquete, Cafu, Laura Georges, Luis García, Shabani Nonda, Patrizia Panico, Fara Williams and Walter Zenga. FIFA.com also speaks with former Bolton Wanderers and Team GB forward, Marvin Sordell, and Sonny Pike, who was labelled the ‘next big thing’ at 14, about their experiences with depression. Teresa Enke also discusses the pain of losing a loved one to suicide, and her work with the Robert Enke Foundation. Depression affects more than 260 million people in the world while around half of all mental health conditions start by age 14. Suicide is the fourth leading cause of death in young people aged 15-29. Among active football players, 23 per cent report sleep disturbance, while 9% have reported depression and a further 7% suffer from anxiety. Among retired players, these figures increase, with 28% struggling…
In a perspective published in Neuropsychopharmacology, leaders from the National Institutes of Health (USA) address how using appropriate language to describe mental illness and addiction can help to reduce stigma and improve how people with these conditions are treated in health care settings and throughout society. In the article “Choosing Appropriate Language to Reduce the Stigma Around Mental Illness and Substance Use Disorders” By ND Volkow, JA Gordon, and GF Koob published in Neuropsychopharmacology the authors define stigma as negative attitudes toward people that are based on certain distinguishing characteristics. More than a decade of research has shown that stigma contributes significantly to negative health outcomes and can pose a barrier to seeking treatment for mental illness or substance use disorders. 35% of people with serious mental illness in the U.S. do not receive treatment Thirty-five per cent of people with serious mental illness in the U.S., and nearly 90% of people with substance use disorders, do not receive treatment. The perspective authors point to evidence that stigma-related bias among clinicians can contribute to a treatment-averse mindset and to flawed clinical care, including failure to implement proven methods of treatment. Further, when a person with a mental illness or substance use disorder continues to experience stigma, they may begin to internalize it. This “self-stigma” can lead to lower self-esteem and feelings of self-worth and can become an ongoing source of distress that may exacerbate symptoms and create barriers to successful treatment. Conversely, efforts to reduce stigma may reduce the psychological burden it places on individuals and can be an important component of removing barriers to care. The authors highlight numerous studies showing that using scientifically accurate language and terms that centralize the experience of patients with mental illness and substance use disorders is one key component to reducing stigma. They argue that a shift in language is crucial for mobilizing resources toward mental health and addiction services and eroding the prejudices that keep people who need those services from seeking or receiving them. Though stigma is difficult to eliminate, they contend that changing the language we use to describe these…
Addressing the impact of caregiver deaths is critical for pediatric mental health, authors note. More than 1.5 million children around the world are estimated to have lost at least one parent, custodial grandparent, or grandparent who lived with them due to death related to COVID-19 during the first 14 months of the pandemic, according to a study published in The Lancet. The study highlights orphanhood as an urgent and overlooked consequence of the pandemic and emphasizes that providing evidence-based psychosocial and economic support to children who have lost a caregiver must be a key part of responding to the pandemic. The analysis used mortality and fertility data to model rates of COVID-19-associated orphanhood (death of one or both parents) and deaths of custodial and co-residing grandparents (ages 60-84) from March 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021, across 21 countries. This study was funded in part by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health affiliated to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. COVID-19-associated deaths: Traumatic experiences In the paper, “COVID-19-associated deaths” referred to the combination of deaths caused directly by COVID-19 and those caused indirectly by other associated causes, such as lockdowns, restrictions on gatherings and movement, decreased access or acceptability of health care and of treatment for chronic diseases. Traumatic experiences, such as the loss of a parent or caregiver, are associated with increases in substance use, mental health conditions, and other behavioural and chronic health conditions. According to a news release, NIDA supports research aimed at understanding the impact of trauma on young people, preventing substance use after experiencing hardship, and treating substance use in populations that experience trauma. “Studies like this play a crucial role in illuminating the COVID-19 pandemic’s long-lasting consequences for families and the future mental health and wellbeing of children across the globe,” said NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, M.D. “Though the trauma a child experiences after the loss of a parent or caregiver can be devastating, there are evidence-based interventions that can prevent further adverse consequences, such as substance use, and we must ensure that…
A new study may open the way for Parkinson’s treatment New Delhi, March 10: Efforts to find a cure for Parkinson’s Disease is expected to get a big boost with researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras finding that energy deficiency in certain cells in the human brain could be a major cause for the development of the neurodegenerative disorder. Parkinson’s Second Largest Mental Disease Parkinson’s Disease is the second most prominent neurodegenerative disease across the world after Alzheimer’s disease. More than 200 years after it was first described by Dr. James Parkinson as “shaking palsy,” the world is still searching for a cure. Currently, the medical intervention is focused mainly on the management of the disease. It is known that Parkinson’s Disease is caused by the loss of a group of cells called dopaminergic cells in a portion of the midbrain called substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). However, the decisive cause of this cell loss has not been elucidated before. The new study could fill the gap. The IIT Madras researchers developed a computational model that showed that energy deficiency might be a major reason for the loss of the specific cells in Parkinson’s Disease. The computational model was developed by Dr. Vignayanandam Ravindernath Muddapu, who completed his Ph.D. recently at IIT Madras, under the guidance of Prof. V. Srinivasa Chakravarthy at the Department of Biotechnology in IIT Madras. Dr. Mudappu is presently associated as a post-doctoral research scholar with the Blue Brain Project of EPFL, which is a technical university based in Switzerland. The Blue Brain project aims to establish simulation neuroscience as a complementary approach alongside experimental, theoretical, and clinical neuroscience to understanding the brain, by building the world’s first biologically detailed digital reconstructions and simulations of the mouse brain. Elaborating on the important findings of this research, Prof. Chakravarthy, said, “While existing treatments manage Parkinson’s Disease symptoms – sometimes with great effect – a cure demands an understanding of the root cause of SNc cell loss. This is the main question addressed in our work.” This research was conducted at IIT-Madras’s Computational Neuroscience Laboratory, which aims…
Hearing technology, such as hearing aids and cochlear implants, when accompanied by appropriate support services and rehabilitative therapy are effective and cost-effective and can benefit children and adults alike.
“Difficulties in your life do not come to destroy you but to help you release the hidden potential and power”. This quote by the late Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, a scientist and the 11th President of India, is the dictum for nurse Divya Sojan, who during the 11 years of her nursing career, has battled with tuberculosis (TB) thrice. Here is her story as narrated by her via an interview given to CNS (Citizen News Service), during the 51st Union World Conference on Lung Health held virtually last month. Divya, who hails from Kerala, finished her 4 years General Nursing and Midwifery course from PD Hinduja College of Nursing, Mumbai in 2009. She then started working at PD Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Centre, Mumbai. It was while working there that she was first diagnosed with TB in 2011. She recalls that, “During a tiring night shift in 2011, I felt a shooting pain in my chest. An X-ray showed pleural effusion and a patch over the left upper zone of my lungs. I was started on a 4 drug treatment regimen for drug-sensitive TB. Even though I initially suffered from nausea and joint pains, I did not have any severe side effects and recovered completely after 6 months. I did not even feel like I was having TB. I was staying in a hostel and my friends took care of everything for me”. A year later, she got infected with the H1N1 virus while taking care of a swine flu patient in the same hospital. “I was wearing a mask and had just been there for a few minutes to help and the patient’s ventilator tubing got disconnected. The very next day I developed flu symptoms and tested positive for swine flu. Five of us were there with the patient but only I got infected, perhaps because of my low immunity.” In 2014, Divya left her Mumbai job to do her Masters in Neuroscience at India’s top medical institution (All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi). It was while studying in Delhi that one day she suddenly…
Geneva, Switzerland, 1 October 2020: On 10 October, World Mental Health Day, world leaders and internationally-recognized celebrities and mental health advocates will come together for the World Health Organization’s Big Event for Mental Health. WHO’s first-ever online advocacy event for mental health will focus on the urgent need to address the world’s chronic under-investment in mental health ̶ a problem that has been thrown into the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic. One person dies every 40 seconds by suicide Close to 1 billion people are living with a mental disorder, 3 million people die every year from the harmful use of alcohol and one person dies every 40 seconds by suicide. And now, billions of people around the world have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which is having a further impact on people’s mental health. The Big Event, which is free and open to the public, will be broadcast on 10 October from 16:00-19:00 CEST on WHO’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and TikTok channels and website. The Big Event, to be hosted by award-winning journalist Femi Oke, will feature an exciting line-up of performances and conversations with celebrities and activists about their motivations for advocating for greater investment in mental health, including: Cynthia Germanotta: President and Co-Founder (with her daughter Lady Gaga) of Born This Way Foundation and WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Mental Health Alisson Becker: goalkeeper for Liverpool Football Club and the Brazilian National Football Team and WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Health Promotion Natália Loewe Becker: medical doctor andWHO Goodwill Ambassador for Health Promotion Talinda Bennington: widow of Linkin Park lead vocalist Chester Bennington and founding partner of the mental health advocacy organization 320 Changes Direction Klas Bergling: father of DJ, musician and producer Tim “Avicii” Bergling and Co-founder of the Tim Bergling Foundation. Korede Bello: Nigerian singer and songwriter Jonny Benjamin: mental health campaigner, film producer and public speaker During the event, national and international leaders who have championed mental health in their own countries and organizations will talk about the benefits of this commitment. They include: Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of the Belgians (corrected from ‘Belgiums’) Epsy Campbell Barr, First Vice-President of Costa Rica Sigrid Kaag, Minister for Foreign Trade and…
The two organizations collaborated to provide high-impact health, immunization, nutrition, HIV and early child development interventions, as well as safe water and sanitation services in every region of the world, including in fragile and conflict settings.
Geneva, 27 August 2020 – Mental health is one of the most neglected areas of public health. Close to 1 billion people are living with a mental disorder, 3 million people die every year from the harmful use of alcohol and one person dies every 40 seconds by suicide. And now, billions of people around the world have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which is having a further impact on people’s Mental health. Yet, relatively few people around the world have access to quality mental health services. In low- and middle-income countries, more than 75% of people with mental, neurological and substance use disorders receive no treatment for their condition at all. Furthermore, stigma, discrimination, punitive legislation and human rights abuses are still widespread. The limited access to quality, affordable mental health care in the world before the pandemic, and particularly in humanitarian emergencies and conflict settings, has been further diminished due to COVID-19 as the pandemic has disrupted health services around the world. Primary causes have been infection and the risk of infection in long-stay facilities such as care homes and psychiatric institutions; barriers to meeting people face-to-face; mental health staff being infected with the virus; and the closing of mental health facilities to convert them into care facilities for people with COVID-19. Move for mental health: let’s invest That’s why, for this year’s World Mental Health Day, WHO, together with partner organizations, United for Global Mental Health and the World Federation for Mental Health, is calling for a massive scale-up in investment in mental health. To encourage public action around the world, a World Mental Health Day campaign, Move for mental health: let’s invest will kick off in September. “World Mental Health Day is an opportunity for the world to come together and begin redressing the historic neglect of mental health,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization. “We are already seeing the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on people’s mental well-being, and this is just the beginning. Unless we make serious commitments to scale up investment in mental health right now, the…
NIH-funded study identifies receptor as possible target for treating anhedonia brain’s reward system may be a viable target for treating anhedonia Bethesda, Maryland (USA) March 30, 2020 • A first-of-its-kind trial has demonstrated that a receptor involved in the brain’s reward system may be a viable target for treating anhedonia (or lack of pleasure), a key symptom of several mood and anxiety disorders. This innovative fast-fail trial was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), part of the National Institutes of Health, and the results of the trial are published in Nature Medicine. Mood and anxiety disorders are some of the most commonly diagnosed mental disorders, affecting millions of people each year. Despite this, available medications are not always effective in treating these disorders. The need for new treatments is clear, but developing psychiatric medications is often a resource-intensive process with a low success rate. To address this, NIMH established the Fast-Fail Trials program with the goal of enhancing the early phases of drug development. “The fast-fail approach aims to help researchers determine—quickly and efficiently—whether targeting a specific neurobiological mechanism has the hypothesized effect and is a potential candidate for further clinical trials,” explained Joshua A. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., director of NIMH. “Positive results suggest that targeting a neurobiological mechanism affects brain function as expected, while negative results allow researchers to eliminate that target from further consideration. We hope this approach will pave the way towards the development of new and better treatments for individuals with mental illnesses.” In this study, researcher Andrew D. Krystal, M.D., who began the research while at the Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, and is now at the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues report the first comprehensive application of this fast-fail approach. The researchers examined the kappa opioid receptor (KOR) as a possible neurobiological target for the treatment of anhedonia. Previous findings suggest that drugs that block the KOR, known as KOR antagonists, can affect reward-related brain circuits in ways that could improve reward processing and reverse anhedonia and associated symptoms. The researchers conducted an eight-week double-blind, randomized…
CCMB plans studies on mental health genomics. Many mental disorders are caused by a combination of biological, psychological, environmental and genetic factors.
World Mental Health Day is organized by the World Federation for Mental Health New Delhi, 09th October 2019. This year’s World Mental Health Day 2019 is supported by WHO, the International Association for Suicide Prevention, and United for Global Mental Health. For the occasion of World Mental Health Day, on 10 October, WHO is releasing a number of materials with guidance on what different professional groups can do to prevent suicide. “Despite progress, one person still dies every 40 seconds from suicide,” said WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “Every death is a tragedy for family, friends and colleagues. Yet suicides are preventable. We call on all countries to incorporate proven suicide prevention strategies into national health and education programmes in a sustainable way.” Suicide rate highest in high-income countries; second leading cause of death among young people. Suicide was the second leading cause of death among young people aged 15-29 years, after road injury. Among teenagers aged 15-19 years, suicide was the second leading cause of death among girls (after maternal conditions) and the third leading cause of death in boys (after road injury and interpersonal violence). Most common methods of suicide The most common methods of suicide are hanging, pesticide self-poisoning, and firearms. Key interventions that have shown success in reducing suicides are restricting access to means; educating the media on responsible reporting of suicide; implementing programmes among young people to build life skills that enable them to cope with life stresses; and early identification, management and follow-up of people at risk of suicide. Key facts about suicide According to a fact sheet of WHO – Close to 800 000 people die due to suicide every year. For every suicide there are many more people who attempt suicide every year. A prior suicide attempt is the single most important risk factor for suicide in the general population. Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year-olds. 79% of global suicides occur in low- and middle-income countries. Ingestion of pesticide, hanging and firearms are among the most common methods of suicide globally. What is going on in the…
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