Global health experts said on Tuesday that the UN General Assembly should devote a special session to mental illness and drug abuse that may wreak havoc in global societies and economies.
“The time has come for recognition at the highest levels of global development, namely the UN General Assembly, of the urgent need for a global strategy to address the global burden of MNS disorders,” said the article in PLoS Medicine.
Lead authors were Vikram Patel from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and Judith Bass from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in the United States.
“Depressive disorders markedly increase the risk for noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes, coronary artery disease, stroke, and dementia,” said the article.
“Conflict, displacement, poverty, gender-based violence, and other social determinants of ill health increase the risk for MNS disorders,” it added.
Tags: drug abuse, health experts, MNS disorders
