Mental illnesses are on the rise
The second is that surveys repeatedly show that more young people are reporting mental distress.
The most common illnesses
Clinical depression (which is not the same a feeling a bit down or a bit depressed – that is called being human) is sometimes best described as a series of things lost: loss of joy, concentration, love, hope, enthusiasm, equilibrium, appetite and sleep (though it can also come with overcorrections on both of these).
Anxiety is a close cousin of clinical depression – and again, it is not the same as feeling a bit anxious. It is an uncontrollable, and often inexplicable, surfeit of worry, often experienced as much in the body as in the mind. Acute anxiety can lead to panic attacks and numerous phobias. Anxiety disorders account for about one in seven mental illness DALYs, according to the World Health Organization.
Bipolar disorder, which affects an estimated 50 million people worldwide, is a disorder that involves extreme mood disturbance. There are two main types: bipolar I involves episodes of severe mania and depression; bipolar II is characterised by more frequent periods of depression with fewer – and less intense – manic episodes.
Schizophrenia is characterised by “delusions, hallucinations, disorganised speech and behaviour, and other symptoms that cause social or occupational dysfunction,” according to DSM-5. It affects an estimated 20 million people worldwide.
Eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa account for about 1% of mental illness DALYs. About 3 million people worldwide are thought to suffer from anorexia.
Dementia is a neurocognitive disorder that results in a decline in brain function and concomitant impairments in thinking, remembering and reasoning. It affects an estimated 50 million people worldwide, up from about 20 million in 1990.
According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) in recent decades the development of diabetes mellitus (DM) warrants the conclusion that this is among the most important global epidemics.
Over the past five decades, the global prevalence of people living with overweight and obesity has increased dramatically. At current estimates, 1.97 billion adults are living with overweight or obesity, with numbers projected to rise.
Breast cancer incidence rates in the United States rose by 24% between 1973 and 1991.
Synergistic effects of pesticides.
| S. No. | Synergistic exposure | References | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cadmium and Ethanol | Flora and Tandon, 1987 | Elevation of nrepinephirine in hypothalamus and mid brain |
| 2 | Cadmium and Dimethoate | Institóris et al., 1999, 2001b | Affects relative body weight gain and relative liver weight |
| 3 | Lead and Dimethoate | Institóris et al., 1999, 2001b | Affects relative body weight gain, relative liver weight, relative thymus weight and the MCV (mean carpuscular volume) value |
| 4 | Cadmium and Propoxur | Institóris et al., 2002 | Alter immuno and neurotoxicological function. |
| 5 | Cadmium and Diazi on | Creasy, 2001; Adamkovicova et al., 2014 | Notable loss of spermatogenic element, disorganization and seminiferous epithelium and lacking maturation of germs cells |
| 6 | Mercury and Dimethoate | Institóris et al., 2001b | Alteration in body weight gain, relative liver and kidney weights and in PFC (Igm-plaqueforming cell) |
| 7 | Arsenic and Dimethoate | Institóris et al., 2001b | Change in relative liver weight MCV and PFC content of spleen |
| 8 | Nickel and Chlorpyrifos | Staal et al., 2007, 2008 | Change in molecular fingerprints |
| 9 | Arsenic and Lead | Mejia et al., 1997 | Alreration in central monoaminogenic system Neurotoxicity and cytotoxicity |
| 10 | Mercury and Lead | Mejia et al., 1997 |
