More children on medication for mental health

An increasing number of young children are being prescribed medication for mental ill health.

The number of youngsters aged 12 or younger on antidepressants has risen by 27 per cent over the last three years, with experts linking the rise to waiting times for specialist mental health services.

The Scottish Government said it was investing £5 million in improving child and adolescent mental health services.

The investigation by the BBC found that 5,572 under18s in Scotland were on antidepressants in 2017-18 and of them 280 were under 13 – up from 221 in 2015-16. It also discovered that the total number of anti-depressants prescriptions for children and young people increased by 9.5 per cent in three years.

The figures were obtained through Freedom of Information requests and relate to a group of powerful antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIS).

The rise in anti-depressant use among children in Scotland was mirrored in England and Northern Ireland.

Toni Giugliano, of the Mental Health Foundation, said large numbers of young people were not receiving adequate treatment for mental health issues.

He said antidepressants were safe if prescribed appropriately, but there needed to be alternative psychological treatments available for GPS to offer their patients.

He added: “We’re seeing far too many young people in Scotland and right across the UK who are not getting access to the support they need when they need it. Indeed, some of our research shows that up to 60-70 per cent of young people don’t get the help they need when they need it. That’s something we need to address.”

Scotland’s mental health minister Clare Haughey said: “I think there’s increasing public awareness in reducing the stigma about mental health and mental illness in general.”