Mental health concerns 'going untreated'

A new report has revealed a lot of people who have mental health concerns are not being given the treatment they need.

The study, which was conducted by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences and Public Health Ontario, found mental health concerns can have more of an impact on the health of people living in the city than cancer or infectious diseases.

Report co-author Dr Paul Kurdyak, chief of general and health systems psychiatry at Canada's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, stated that the majority of people affected by mental health concerns or addiction are not receiving treatment, even if it is available.

"For instance, only a small fraction of people with depression or alcohol use disorders are accessing health services," he said, adding there would be an outcry if this was the case for a condition such as diabetes.

Research by the University of Warwick in the UK and Dartmouth College in the US recently found individuals who eat seven portions of fruit and vegetables a day have the best mental health.

Read about support and personalised care at Barchester care homes for anyone with mental health concerns.