The Ministry of Health has called for more awareness from the public on the mental health of the young, as part of efforts to mark World Mental Health Day which fell on Friday.

More than 15 percent of Chinese youth have been found with mental problems, and about 30 million young people under 17 are suffering from depression, the Shanghai-based Wenhui Daily reported.

The World Health Organization estimates that before 2020, the rate of children with mental problems will increase to 50 percent, and mental problem will become a major factor behind deaths and illness in the young worldwide.

Deng Xiaohong, the spokesperson for the Beijing municipal health bureau, said rapid social changes is one of the reasons behind the rising number of youngsters with psychological problems.

If these mental diseases are not addressed on time, occurrence of crimes, drug-taking and other dangerous behavior are expected to rise.

Experts said mental diseases could be caused by many factors, such as the inability to handle interpersonal relations well, unstable emotions and pressures from an overload of studies.

A number of experts have also said the one-child policy is another reason leading to poor mental health in the young.

Children are said to be too "spoiled" and "selfish" in a one-child family.

Schools in many cities are reportedly rolling out measures to help students maintain their mental well-being.

Yin Jingmiao, a teacher of the Beijing No 105 middle school, told China Daily that the school invites psychologists to provide counseling to students three times a month.

"Students can be arranged to have 40-minute counseling sessions," Yin said.

The school also gives lectures on mental health to senior grade students before they take the national college entrance exams, to help ease any anxiety arising from the tests.

(China Daily October 12, 2008)