Almost every 4th child has mental health problems

Nearly one in four children under treatment for mental health problems

05/04/2012

Almost one in four children under the age of twelve is being treated as an outpatient in Saxony for mental health problems. This resulted in a survey of the health insurance AOK. For physicians Peter Schwarz from the University Hospital Dresden the cause is often in the social environment of the children.

Social environment often triggers mental health problems in children
According to the AOK survey, the number of under-12-year-olds treated for mental health problems rose to nearly 59,000 in 2010. This was a significant increase compared to previous years, said the health insurance last Wednesday at the presentation of their health report 2011. The Chairman of the Board Rolf Steinbronn spoke of „sheer unbelievable numbers“. In 2011 alone, under 18-year-old AOK insured would have received psychostimulants for 3.5 million euros. This is scary. „Saxon children take in 1.1 tonnes of Ritalin every year, "explains Peter Schwarz from the Dresden University Hospital, who believes that the cause is often in the children's social environment. „The less secure social structures a child has experienced in his home environment, the less likely he or she will feel at school. "

General increase in mental illness
More and more adults are suffering from mental health problems. According to the AOK health report, nearly ten percent of employees' days lost are due to mental illness. „There is a trend that many workers fail because of it“, explains Steinbronn. However, as in previous years, insured persons were most frequently treated for respiratory diseases with 22.4 percent and musculoskeletal disorders with 15.6 percent. The average number of sick days in 2011 was 15.3 days. (Ag)

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Social phobia: When shyness makes you ill

Picture: Jens Weber