Controversial study claims mental illness is 'catching'...
amid new data showing 1 in 9 children now diagnosed with ADHD READ MORE: One in 12 children are in mental health 'crisis' report warns By Maiya Focht For Dailymail.Com Published: 22:47, 23 May 2024 | Updated: 22:47, 23 May 2024 e-mail View comments Mental illness isn't caused by transmissible viruses like the flu - but one new study suggests it might be spreading amongst teenagers nonetheless. People who shared a ninth-grade classroom with someone diagnosed with a mental condition were nine percent more likely to develop the same condition at some point in the future, the study from University of Helsinki psychologists found.
Further, if someone had multiple classmates with a mental condition - they were 18 percent more likely to develop a condition of their own than those without mentally ill classmates. But many other experts say that mental illness isn't contagious, instead they blame the increase on things like the prevalence of social media and an increased focus on academic achievement. 'These increases are significant especially because there is a notable service gap worldwide for mental health care,' Dr Tracy Vaillancourt, a psychology professor at the University of Ottawa who wasn't involved with the research, told DailyMail.
com. A new study from the University of Helsinki found people who had one classmate with a mental disorder were nine percent more likely to develop one themselves. The researchers caution .
