World-First Study Reveals Youth Mental Health Crisis Worsening
Youth mental health worldwide is at ‘a dangerous phase’, with experts warning that this may be our last chance to address an escalating crisis. The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on Youth Mental Health, a groundbreaking study led by Professor Patrick McGorry at Orygen, and involving over 50 experts from five continents, has revealed an alarming rise in mental ill-health among young people.
In Australia alone, there has been a 50% increase in youth mental ill-health over the past two decades, a trend exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. With the average age of onset now at just 15 years, and 63–75% of cases developing before age 25, the need for action is more urgent than ever.
The Commission highlights the rapidly changing landscape of youth mental health, driven by global megatrends such as harmful social media, housing affordability and climate change anxieties. It calls for a paradigm shift in how we approach this issue, urging greater investment in research, care models, education and accessible youth mental healthcare.
As mental ill-health continues to be the leading cause of disability and lost potential, the study underscores the critical need for major structural reforms across healthcare, education, employment and welfare. Despite accounting for 45% of disease burden in those aged 10–24 years, youth mental health receives just 2% of global health budgets—a disparity that must be addressed.
The research authors said ‘this crisis now needs immediate action, both politically and socially, including drawing on storytelling by those with lived experience’.
ConnectedLE, through its digital mental health and wellbeing education platform and powerful storytelling approach, is committed to being part of the solution. By building health literacy and confidence levels of front-line workforce who work directly with young people, we can equip them with the tools they need to empower youth to seek-help and navigate their mental health challenges.
The call to action is clear: we must invest in our young people’s mental wellbeing now, or risk losing an entire generation to preventable mental health issues.
ConnectedLE Co-founders
Dr Kylie Armstrong and Nicole Evans
