Gender and Adolescent Mental Health: An Opportunity to Achieve Sustainable Development

MENTAL HEALTH AMONG ADOLESCENTS

Suicide is a significant and growing global health problem which has consistently ranked among the leading causes of death for older adolescent girls and boys globally, and approximately 78% of suicides worldwide occurred in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) in 2015 (WHO, 2018). Suicide and accidental death from self-harm were the third highest cause of adolescent mortality in 2015, resulting in an estimated 67,000 deaths (WHO, 2017a). Mental health can impede all aspects of health, including overall well-being and development, leaving adolescents feeling socially isolated, stigmatized and unable to optimize their social, vocational and interpersonal contributions to society. An estimated three-quarters of adult mental health disorders start before the age of 24 (WHO, 2017b). Poor mental health in adolescence is strongly associated with higher rates of substance use, early pregnancy, school dropout, delinquent behaviors and suicide. It can contribute to more serious mental disorders and overall poor health later in life.

The burden of poor mental health in adolescents spotlights a growing need to identify and implement effective interventions for them. Ensuring adolescents’ healthy development requires a focus both on risk factors and protective factors across various health outcomes. Particular focus must be paid to the impacts of harmful gender norms, as well as identifying factors that can protect and enhance their mental health and well-being. The failure to address mental health problems in LMICs has wide-reaching consequences and impedes the achievement of basic development outcomes. The purpose of this brief is to discuss why gender and mental health are important to development and to provide recommendations to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on how to address mental health in research and programming.

Also read-  Understanding and Tackling the Gendered Drivers of Poor Adolescent Mental Health