These findings come from the Quebec Statistics Institute, which unveiled the third version of the Quebec Survey on the health of secondary school youth on Tuesday afternoon.
Not surprisingly, the effects of the global health crisis play a significant role in certain factors related to mental health. However, COVID-19 is not the only one responsible for the trends. Screen consumption, on the rise since 2016-2017, constitutes the main cause of this phenomenon. Beyond simply owning a cell phone, this lifestyle habit brings certain collateral and indirect damage.
“There are mental health phenomena that arise from the content. What are the impacts of having relationships through social networks, comparing yourself or having access to a lot of information? It concerns us to see the impacts on self-esteem. In addition, we substitute certain activities for the benefit of screens, such as physical activity or sleep,” theorizes the doctor at the public health department of the CIUSSS Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Catherine Habel.
Concerning the pandemic, a third of respondents observed a deterioration in the quality of sleep during the crisis. As for the practice of physical activities and mental health, a decline was noted among 40% and 37% of young people, respectively.
The doctor at the public health department of the CIUSSS Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Catherine Habel. (Tom Core/The Daily)
One of the trends that captures the attention of those responsible for the regional study is the increase in nicotine consumption among young people in high school. While traditional smoking continues to decline, the use of electronic cigarettes and e-cigarettes has seen marked growth, especially among girls (12% increase since 2017). Nearly three out of 10 students in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean use tobacco products or electronic cigarettes, almost double the proportion in Quebec.
First presented as an alternative to reduce tobacco consumption, vaping has become more popular in recent years and its access has also become easier. As for excess alcohol, the toll remained stable in the region (50%). Unsurprisingly, this remains well above the provincial percentage, which is down to 29%.
“We have completely reviewed our smoking cessation centers since the pandemic. For several months, we have presented a new model where we adapt more to people. What do they need to stop smoking cigarettes, and we have integrated the entire vaping aspect, because we cannot ignore it. We want school nurses to be able to support young people in quitting smoking,” said Ms. Habel.
In more positive findings, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean stands out in the perception of overall health and mental health. Additionally, local boys are above average when it comes to physical activity. The regional CIUSSS, however, points out that overall, these indicators still remain in decline since 2010-2011.
Help the girls
If some phenomena concerning lifestyle habits and mental health are in decline, the gap between boys and girls is widening more and more. In terms of overall health, 58% of girls say they have good or excellent health, compared to 71% of boys. A proportion of 31% of them believe they have flourishing mental health (compared to 40% of men) and 37% have been diagnosed with anxiety, depression or an eating disorder (14% of their male counterparts).
Several factors related to lifestyle have been heavily affected by the latest health crisis. (Tom Core/The Daily)
These results are partly explained by the fact that girls ask for more help for these indicators than boys, name their problems more easily and use services more. Despite everything, the correlation is not strong enough to explain the magnitude of the thing nor the growing gap between the two genders, underlines Ms. Habel.
“There are several social phenomena that explain why girls have less self-esteem and more comparisons on performance. Today, we have not yet presented the data regarding weight-related concerns. The number of young people concerned about their weight or who take actions to control it is significant. This translates very partially into eating disorder diagnoses. Overall, there is something in terms of image and performance that needs to be explored,” she says.
More than 4,440 students aged 12 to 17 attending secondary schools in the region responded to the survey, which represents a participation rate of 89%.
