Awareness week highlights link between depression and suicides

The most common cause of death among young people in Ireland is suicide

The most common cause of death among young people in Ireland is suicide. The launch of Depression Awareness Week Nationwide heard yesterday that more people aged between 15 and 35 are taking their own lives than die from cancer or road accidents.

The theme of the week, "Too Young to be Depressed?", highlights the significant escalation and effect of depression in young Irish men and women. Dr Patrick McKeon, chairman of Aware, the depression support group, said the impact of depression in Ireland is far-reaching and costs the State over £280 million a year.

To "fundamentally tackle the problem of suicide it appears society will undergo a radical review of its attitude to depression and its treatment", he said. Ireland needed to look at how other countries, that have gone through similar social changes, have coped with the problem, he said. "We don't have to try and re-invent the wheel but to learn from what others have done."

It is very important to remember the link between depression and suicide, said Dr McKeon. "We need to dispel the myth that it is the guy who lost his job or the farmer who lost his herd that goes off and commits suicide. This is what we see as a society without looking at what went on in the weeks and months before that."

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The impact of suicide has even wider implications for young people, he said. Recent surveys have indicated that 10 per cent of 13to 18-year-olds are known to suffer from clinical depression, at least half of which goes unrecognised within the family.

The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, who launched the Dawn week, said Aware has commissioned a scientific review of the research literature on depression and suicide in Ireland and abroad, to underpin the understanding of depression in young people.

A commission is to be established which will represent the youth bodies of Ireland to study the report and issue policy recommendations. "Already there have been discussion with all of the voluntary and statutory bodies with an interest in youth affairs which should lead to a new initiative which will shape Aware's direction over the next few years," said the Minister.

During the week, Aware will host public lectures throughout the State to highlight the issues affecting young people. At Club USI in Dublin at 7.30 p.m. tomorrow night, a public forum will be held with a panel of five young sufferers of depression, who will talk about their experiences.