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Self-harm is skyrocketing among teen girls

Psychiatrists believe the pressures of life in today's world may be the reason.

An alarming number of teenage girls are admitted to hospital for self-harm, the Daily Mail reported.

According to the report, the rates have more than doubled in the past 20 years.

Data from hospital admissions for self-harm patients in the UK shows:

* 13,463 girls were admitted in 2017 from 7,327 in 1997.
* 2332 boys were admitted in 2017 from 2,236 in 1997.

Pressures of today's world that include body-image issues due to social media and stress to perform well in school could be some of the reasons, psychiatrists believe.

"I think there are a range of factors putting pressure on young children - academic pressures, exam pressures, social media... with fear of missing out and comparing yourself unfavourably to images you see online," Vice-chairman of the child and adolescent faculty at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Jon Goldin, told the Times.

A spokesman for UK's National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) says the data calls for urgent action to be taken to prevent a child from reaching a crisis point.

"These heart-breaking figures are sadly unsurprising. We know from contacts to Childline that many children are being driven to self-harm as a way of dealing with the pressures and demands of modern-day life," the NSPCC spokesman is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.

( Source : deccan chronicle )
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