April 7 is celebrated as World Health Day, Each year, the World Health Organisation selects a theme highlighting a particular priority area of public health. The theme for this year’s global health awareness day is ‘Depression: Let’s Talk’.
Depression affects all demographic groups, it is more common in adolescents, teens, youth, women after childbirth and those above 60.
According to World Health Organsation, depression is one of the leading cause of ill health around the world.
Depression is an important risk factor for suicide, which claims hundreds of thousands of lives each year. WHO released a staggering figure of over 30 crore people who are suffering from depression globally.
Signs and symptoms of depression include disturbed sleep, loss of appetite, guilty feeling, low self-worth, feeling tired and lethargy.
According to WHO, depression is “persistent sadness and a loss of interest in activities that people normally enjoy, accompanied by an inability to carry out daily activities for two weeks or more.
“Experts believe that lack of support for people with mental disorders, coupled with a fear of stigma, prevent many from accessing the treatment they need to live healthy and productive lives.
On world Health Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted saying I pray that you are blessed with wonderful health, which gives you the opportunity to pursue your dreams & excel.
The number of people with depression has increased more than 18 per cent from 2005 to 2015.
To encourage more people with depression to get help and to empower those suffering from mental disorders, Parliament recently passed the Mental Healthcare Bill that seeks to decriminalise suicide attempt by mentally ill people and provides for the right to better healthcare for people suffering from mental illness.
Now, a person, who is struggling with a mental health issue, will not be looked down upon nor will he feel uneasy while sharing his problems and will feel more comfortable to reach out to mental health service providers
