Cases of anxiety and depression increased dramatically worldwide in 2020.
This was revealed in a new medical study examining the effects of the corona virus on mental health worldwide.
The study found that in 2020, an additional 76 million cases of anxiety and 53 million cases of depression were recorded worldwide.
The study suggests that the corona virus epidemic has severely affected people's mental health worldwide, with young people and women being more affected than men or the elderly.
"We believe that women are the most affected by the social and economic consequences of the epidemic," said experts from the University of Queensland in Australia.
The most likely reason for women to be affected, she said, is that when schools close or family members fall ill, women take on household responsibilities, while their salaries are lower, savings are lower and Men have less job security than men and are more likely to face financial hardship for such reasons, while domestic violence has also played a role.
He said that the closure of educational institutions has also had a negative impact on the youth and they could not keep in touch with their friends and colleagues due to other restrictions, while in any economic crisis the youth are at high risk of becoming unemployed.
The study, published in the medical journal Lancet, looked at 48 research reports published between January 1, 2020 and January 29, 2021, which looked at diseases related to anxiety and depression before and during the Corona epidemic in different countries. Rate checked.
The research team examined changes in mental health during the Corona virus epidemic due to reduced human transport and the rate of daily cases.
A model was then developed using all the details to differentiate between global mental health disease rates before and after the epidemic.
It also included countries where no mental health survey information was available during the epidemic.
Taking all the factors and estimates into account, the research team estimated that by 2020, 246 million cases of depression-related illnesses and 374 million cases of anxiety were recorded worldwide.
Compared to 2019, the rate of depression-related diseases increased by 28% and the rate of anxiety cases increased by 26%.
According to the study, two-thirds of depression-related illnesses and 68 per cent additional cases of insomnia occurred in women, while young people were more affected than older people, especially young people aged 20 to 24 years.
Researchers say the Corona epidemic has put a strain on mental health systems, which are already struggling to cope with the influx of cases.
"We need to seriously examine how we should respond to the mental health needs of the population in order to move forward. We hope that the results will help guide the decisions that the population has made," he said. Will be helpful for mental health.
