BBC – Staff Writer
“Parents are too often out of touch with the mental health pressures faced by girls and young women, suggests research. Self-harm was the biggest health concern for girls aged 11-21, according to the Girlguiding Girls’ Attitudes Survey 2015. Researchers questioned a representative sample of more than 1,500 UK girls and young women aged seven to 21. The findings “provide a stark warning”, said chief executive Julie Bentley….The figures show the mental wellbeing and resilience of UK girls are under threat – and yet adults are failing to recognise this, according to the organisation, the UK’s largest charity for girls and young women. Among more than 1,000 11-to-21-year-old girls and young women questioned, the top health concerns were self-harm, mental illness, depression and eating disorders, along with smoking. Some 62% of this age group said they knew a girl or young woman who had experienced a mental health problem, while 82% said adults often failed to recognise the pressures they faced. Overall, more than a third (37%) said they had needed help with their own mental health. .”(more)