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REVIEW article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Adolescent and Young Adult Psychiatry
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1517533

The Youth Mental Health Crisis: Analysis and Solutions

Provisionally accepted
Patrick McGorry Patrick McGorry 1,2*Hasini Gunasiri Hasini Gunasiri 1,2*Cristina Mei Cristina Mei 1,2*Simon Rice Simon Rice 1,2*Caroline Gao Caroline Gao 1,2
  • 1 Centre for Youth Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, Australia
  • 2 Orygen Youth Health, Parkville, Victoria, Australia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Since the mid-20th century, mental illness has become a leading cause of health burden, particularly among adolescents and emerging adults, with most disorders emerging before the age of 25. Over the past two decades, mental ill health has surged to alarming levels, with evidence confirming that the increase is not just due to better awareness or diagnosis but reflects a genuine public health crisis. Study Design/Method: We explore the evolving landscape of youth mental health and its contributing factors, including family dynamics, educational pressures, climate change, social media, and socio-economic challenges, potentially linked to neoliberal policies. A narrative review methodology was employed to analyze these factors and their role in the trends of mental ill-health among young people. Study Results: We document mental health trends since the mid-1990s, focusing on mental and substance use disorders among young people and their current needs. Potential new explanatory factors and megatrends, potentially flowing from a paradigm shift in the global political economy which has largely passed under the radar, yet which has produced fragmentation and inequality, are identified, with the COVID-19 pandemic further intensifying these trends. We discuss methodologies to estimate the contribution of these megatrends and outline potential barriers to implementation, along with strategies to overcome them. Conclusion: This review calls for a comprehensive global action plan, emphasizing prevention, early intervention, and improved treatment strategies. In addition to strengthening prevention, which may take time and be elusive, immediate action is needed to innovate and expand services, which are currently under-resourced and overwhelmed.

    Keywords: Youth mental health, Anxiety, Depression, Time trends, Prevalence, Risk factors

    Received: 26 Oct 2024; Accepted: 09 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 McGorry, Gunasiri, Mei, Rice and Gao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Patrick McGorry, Centre for Youth Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052, Victoria, Australia
    Hasini Gunasiri, Centre for Youth Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052, Victoria, Australia
    Cristina Mei, Orygen Youth Health, Parkville, VIC 3052, Victoria, Australia
    Simon Rice, Centre for Youth Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Parkville, 3052, Victoria, Australia

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.