Climate change is impacting mental health: WHO

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Climate change is significantly impacting mental health and psychosocial well-being, the World Health Organization said, while calling on countries to strengthen mental health systems and services to address this growing challenge.

A recent report by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) revealed that rapidly increasing climate change leads to emotional distress, anxiety, depression, grief, and suicidal behaviour.

Yet large gaps exist in mental health needs and the availability and accessibility and services to address them.

"Climate change exacerbates many social, environmental, and economic risk factors for mental health and psychosocial well-being," said Saima Wazed, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia.

Among WHO regions, South-East Asia is most vulnerable to this, she added, at a regional workshop for mental health, held in Indonesia, last week.

"An estimated 260 million people live with a mental health condition and more than 200,000 people die by suicide every year," she said, noting that climate change is worsening mental health.

It is also putting an extra burden on the health systems, Wazed said.

"There is a large gap in both knowledge of and response to, climate change's impact on mental health…There is an evident need to bring together climate and mental health officials from member states to ensure accelerated action to adapt and mitigate climate change impacts and prevent further widening of this gap," Wazed added.

According to a 2021 WHO survey of 95 countries, just 9 had mental health and psychosocial support in their national health and climate change plans.

To strengthen mental health systems, the Regional Director called for integrating climate change considerations into policies and programmes for mental health.

Policies and programmes dealing with climate change and health must also include mental health. Wazed also called for addressing the large gaps in funding both for mental health and for responding to the health impacts of climate change.

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