Laura Poy Solano
La Jornada Newspaper
Sunday, November 23, 2025, p. 6
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one in seven young people between 10 and 19 years of age in the world suffers from some type of mental disorder, which represents 15 percent of the global mortality burden for this age group.
The agency noted that depression, anxiety and behavioral disorders are among the main causes of illness and disability among adolescents. In Mexico, data from the 2022 National Health and Nutrition Survey warn of the sustained increase in cases of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation after the Covid-19 pandemic.
In this regard, doctors Alexa Bazúa Gerez, specialist at the National Institute of Psychiatry; and Pamela Garbus, coordinator of the Master’s Degree in Childhood and Adolescence Mental Health at the Autonomous University of Querétaro (UAQ), warned about the lack of timely care for mental health conditions for this sector of the population, and the possible effects of a context of endemic violence that is reflected in the family, school and streets.
“Although we are in a post-pandemic period in which anxiety and depression have shown a clear increase, regardless of some undetected neurodevelopmental problems, such as attention deficit disorder, the central problem is the lack of timely attention and the conditions to do so.
School is the place where it is usually detected that something is not right, but they do not have the resources to address it,” said Garbus.
The specialists agreed that another high risk factor in mental health, as demonstrated by various studies, is the context of violence that the majority of children and adolescents in Mexico face. They stated that there are many studies that demonstrate the relationship between violence and mental health.
In this regard, Bazúa Gerez considered that “the social context of youth is crucial. It is estimated that 60 percent of the country’s population has been exposed to some type of violence, which constitutes a risk factor in suffering from psychological disorders.”
The experts highlighted the impact that the media and social networks have on mental health. They added that one of the most urgent challenges is suicidal behavior, and its constant increase in young people.
