Dewi Cooke; 4/6/08
Rates of self-harm among young people aged 12 to 24 have risen by 43% in 10 years — and young women are considered to be at greatest risk. Disturbing figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show that from 1996 to 2006 the incidence of young women hospitalised for intentional self-harm, mostly by self-poisoning through medical overdose or cutting their skin, had grown by 51%. This far outstripped the rate among young men, although there was still a 27% growth in the number of young men hospitalised for self-harm over the decade. “The preponderance of females in self-harm is well-recognised,” Professor Susan Sawyer from the Centre for Adolescent Health at the Royal Children’s Hospital said. “What it’s demonstrating is that we can’t sit back and rest on our laurels. We really need to be taking youth mental health seriously.”
http://www.theage.com.au/national/huge-jump-in-selfharm-among-young-women-20080603-2lc9.html
Tags: Australia, health, Young People