[ad_1]
By Nina Avramova, CNN
A new study reveals that the number of prescribed antidepressants in England has increased after the UK vote to leave the European Union in 2016.
Researchers believe that this may be due to uncertainty about the future of the country and believe that more health services should be available.
But experts make the link with Brexit and believe instead that the broader austerity in the country could be an underlying factor.
Researchers from King's College London and Harvard University wanted to examine whether the Brexit vote, decide whether the UK would leave the European Union, June 23, 2016 had no effect on mental health in England, as previous studies have been devoted to the economic uncertainty and major social events affecting the health and mental well-being of people.
The researchers examined monthly prescribing data for each month of July 2011 from 2011 to 2016 for all of England's 326 polling zones. They analyzed the prescriptions of antidepressants and compared them to the prescriptions of drugs treating diseases. unlikely to be influenced by uncertainty or depression, such as gout, iron deficiency and thyroid problems.
Both groups increased each year before the referendum. But prescriptions for antidepressants continued to increase after the vote, though at a slower pace than before, while other medications declined.
Prescriptions for antidepressants increased by 13.4% faster than other controlled drugs, according to the study published Tuesday in the BMJ.
"This study adds to previous studies that showed that events at the national level could have an effect on people's mental health or mood," said Sotiris Vandoros, Lecturer in Health Economics. at the King & # 39; s Business School and lead author of the study.
Vandoros believes that the Brexit referendum may have triggered the increase in prescriptions for antidepressants.
But the results are subject to interpretation because they are based on trends and can not prove the causal link, Vandoros added, and do not imply an overall increase in depression for the whole country. .
Instead, the study shows that "people negatively affected by the referendum who might have begun to feel worse" eventually resulted in an increase in antidepressants, he said.
The main cause of concern around Brexit is the question of what will happen next. Other causes of stress include economic uncertainty, employment opportunities, offshoring of businesses and the fact that EU nationals have the opportunity to stay at home. United Kingdom.
"All this uncertainty will cause stress, anxiety and worry, and some people may feel more depressed because of it," Vandoros said.
The trend shows that for some, the referendum could be linked to a deterioration of mental health, he said. However, others have also become happier after the vote, and this evolution is simply not reflected in the prescriptions of antidepressants.
It's hard to explain why there has been a decline in prescriptions for other classes of drugs as compared to antidepressants, Vandoros said. One of the possible reasons is that people were distracted after the vote on Brexit and had less time to see their doctor and perform their prescriptions..
Vandoros added that in this scenario, the distraction of people should have led to a decrease in antidepressants, which was not seen. "But eventually, all this uncertainty and depression have offset that effect," he said.
Previous research conducted by Vandoros has revealed an increase in road accidents the first two days following the announcement of austerity measures, such as wage cuts and pensions, for reasons such as increased anxiety, stress and sleep deprivation.
Seeking help
"Obviously, it is very difficult to establish a concrete link between Brexit and the use of antidepressants," said Ian David Cummins, a lecturer in social work at the University of Toronto. University of Salford, who did not participate in the study. He thinks it's because Brexit itself is a very complicated event, but depression and why people seek advice and medications are also complex issues.
Cummins added that the study needed to place the vote on Brexit in the context of greater generosity austerity and growing inequality in the United Kingdom.
"Austerity is an important driver" of many concerns, said Cummins, who published this year a research paper on the effects of austerity on mental health. The Cummins report concluded that austerity and associated policies in the United Kingdom had increased the overall burden of mental distress.
A recent UN report said that austerity in the UK had contributed to 14 million people, one-fifth of the population, live in poverty.
People could ask for help for a variety of reasons, including reduced social assistance benefits, increased work pressure or housing problems, Cummins said.
Kamaldeep S. Bhui, professor of cultural psychiatry and epidemiology at Queen Mary University in London, said the study focused mainly on the prescriptions of antidepressants, which "do not constitute a perfect method "to measure mental health.
The antidepressant surveillance data is not very accurate and there are many reasons why people can take such drugs, explained Bhui, who did not participate in the new research.
Allan Young, professor of mood disorders at the Institute of Psychiatric Psychiatry and Neuroscience at King's College London, said that "the prescriptions of antidepressants have steadily increased in England these recent years, and this data may simply reflect that rather than a single event ".
"It should be noted that antidepressants are prescribed to treat anxiety disorders as well as mood disorders, and it is credible that people are more anxious because of the recent uncertainty of society," said Young, who did not participate in the research.
"The levels of anxiety in the population have not been reported in this study and therefore can not be shown explicitly," he added.
Money and mental health
Uncertainty is widespread on a global scale. A January report by Deutsche Bank indicates that the uncertainty of economic policies in Europe has reached "extraordinarily high levels".
People whose mental health is most affected by uncertainty generally lack a safety net consisting of financial or emotional support from friends or family members said Vandoros.
One in four British adults who have a mental health problem also has debt problems, according to the UK charity Money and Mental Health. About 25% – 24% – people suffering from depression or anxiety are in debt, said the charity. Financial hardship has implications for mental health, including anxiety, insomnia and addiction.
"The fear of losing your job is an important predictor of poorer mental health," Vandoros said.
Therefore, the new study fits into a broader body of evidence showing that mental health, mood and well-being can be affected by national events such as elections, he said.
Researchers insist that "mental health policies be stepped up in times of uncertainty", events such as Brexit also affecting psychological well-being, which impacts on economic performance and health. social cohesion.
Bhui said the study is an "important signal" and that "politicians need to be more cautious in decision-making because it can affect health".
Source link
