A new Eurobarometer survey on mental health found that nine out of ten respondents (89 percent) believe that promoting mental health is as important as promoting physical health. At the same time, less than half of respondents believe that people with mental health problems have the same access to care as those with other illnesses. In addition, nearly half of respondents (46 percent) have experienced emotional or psychosocial problems, such as feeling depressed or anxious, in the past twelve months. According to the survey, more than half (54 percent) had not received help from a specialist for a mental health problem. These results show that it is crucial to continue working on mental health at the EU level.
World Mental Health Day
Study: Mental health promotion is as important as physical health promotion
Published Oct. 10, 2023 08:00
zdrowie psychiczne
Stella Kyriakides, Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, will host a high-level conference on mental health, based on the comprehensive approach to mental health presented by the Commission in June 2023. The event will be attended by Her Majesty the Queen of Belgium, as well as hundreds of representatives from EU institutions, national governments, European organizations and other interested partners.
Growing pressure on mental health
The published Eurobarometer survey confirms that recent events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's aggression against Ukraine, the climate crisis and other social and economic pressures have worsened the already low level of mental health in Europe. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, one in six people in the EU suffered from mental health problems, and the situation has worsened. Most respondents answered that recent global events had affected their mental health to some extent (44 percent) or a great extent (18 percent).
The majority of respondents (60 percent) believe that living conditions are the most important determinants of good mental health, followed by financial security (53 percent). About a third of Europeans believe that contact with nature and being in green spaces (35 percent), sleep habits (35 percent), physical activity (34 percent) and social contacts (33 percent) have the greatest impact on good mental health. Across all member states, however, the vast majority believe that social media use can negatively affect young people's mental health.
As for how the EU can make the greatest contribution to improving the mental health of European citizens, the largest proportion of respondents indicated that by "improving the overall quality of life" (45 percent), followed by "improving access to diagnosis, treatment and care for mental disorders" (37 percent) and "supporting the mental health of the most vulnerable" (35 percent).
High-level conference on mental health
Mental health is an integral part of health and a priority for the Commission. Accordingly, the Commission is organizing a conference on mental health. The half-day event will be hosted by Commissioner Stella Kyriakides and keynote speeches will be given by Her Majesty the Queen of the Belgians, Marc Angel, Vice President of the European Parliament, Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, José Miñones, Minister of Health of Spain, Bertrand Bainvel, UNICEF Representative to the European Union Institutions, Dr. Péter Takács, Minister of Health of Hungary and Frank Vandenbroucke, Minister of Social Affairs of Belgium.
Source: Press Release
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