Rise in girls self-harming

TEENAGE girls visiting their doctor after self-harming has soared 68% in three years, a study reveals.

For girls aged 13 to 16, the rate rose from 45.9 per 10,000 in 2011 to 77.0 in 2014, data from GPs showed.

The self-harm rate in girls aged 10 to 19 was 37.4 per 10,000, three times that of boys. A University of Manchester report says the rise could be due to “more stressful times” — but author Prof Nav Kapur said: “We can’t really explain this rapid increase among girls.”

Of 16,912 self-harm reports to doctors from 2001 to 2014, there was no referral to mental health services in 55% of cases.