研究顯示 女性比男性更易患焦慮症

Women are nearly twice as likely to experience anxiety as men, a globAl review reveals.

日前一份全球調查顯示，女性遇到焦慮的可能性大約是男性的兩倍。

Its authors from Cambridge University say that as well as women, young people under 35 and those with health problems are particularly affected. They estimate that four in every 100 people have anxiety.

劍橋大學的作者表示，同女性一樣，35歲以下的年輕人以及那些有健康問題的人受到的影響尤其大。他們估計每100人中就有4人患有焦慮症。

The review of 48 published pieces of work says more research is needed to find out which other communities are at high risk.

這份包含了48篇發表作品的調查認爲，現在還需要作更多的研究，才能找出其他高風險羣體。

North America is thought to be worst affected, with eight in 100 people having anxiety, and East Asia least affected (three in 100).

北美被認爲是受影響最大的地區，每100人中就有8人存在焦慮症，東亞是受影響最小的區域，只有3%。

Although the proportion of people suffering with this mental health problem stayed fairly constant between 1990 and 2010, the authors said it was a problem which was rarely researched, unlike depression.

雖然從1990年到2010年間，遭受該心理健康問題影響的人口比例保持得較爲穩定，但作者認爲，這個問題不像憂鬱症，極少被研究。

Review author Olivia Remes, from the department of public health and primary care at the University of Cambridge, said anxiety disorders could make life extremely difficult.

來自劍橋大學公共衛生和初級保健部的作者奧利維亞·雷梅斯表示，焦慮症會使生活極爲困難。

"There has been a lot of focus on depression - which is important - but anxiety is equally important and debilitating; it can lead to the development of other diseases and psychiatric disorders, increase the risk for suicide and is associated with high costs to society."

“我們對抑鬱症的關注很多--這是很重要的--但焦慮症同樣重要、具有同樣的傷害，它可以引發其他疾病和精神疾病的發展，增加自殺的風險，與較高的社會成本相關。”

She added: "It is important for our health services to understand how common they are and which groups of people are at greatest risk."

她補充說道：“讓我們的健康服務瞭解到它的普遍性，以及哪些是高風險人羣，這些都至關重要。”