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PERSPECTIVE ARTICLE

Confronting the mental health crisis: Addressing depression and anxiety among adolescents through prevention and social renaissance

Xiaoqing Xiang1* ,  Sandra Thompson2
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1 High School, Keystone Academy, Beijing, China
2 Center for Student Development, Keystone Academy, Beijing, China
JCBP, 8077 https://doi.org/10.36922/jcbp.8077
Submitted: 19 December 2024 | Revised: 19 February 2025 | Accepted: 28 February 2025 | Published: 21 March 2025
© 2025 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
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Abstract

This paper provides a comprehensive perspective on the mental health crisis, with a particular focus on depression and anxiety among adolescents. These disorders are non-communicable diseases and have emerged as chronic epidemics with societal implications. The paper highlights the multifaceted root causes of these disorders, including genetic, epigenetic, environmental, lifestyle, evolutionary, and social factors. It also presents critiques on the current pharmacological and psychological treatments, arguing that focusing solely on a treatment perspective disregards the wider societal factors beyond medicine. Through this perspective, we advocate for a holistic, prevention-oriented approach, emphasizing lifestyle modifications, social environmental enhancements, psychotherapy access, and psychoeducation intervention, for addressing these disorders. A multitiered strategy engaging educational institutions, clinical practitioners, and policymakers is proposed to foster an environment where adolescents can thrive.

Keywords
Depression
Anxiety
Adolescent
Social determinants
Lifestyle modification
Social renaissance
Psychoeducation
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare they have no competing interests.
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Journal of Clinical and Basic Psychosomatics, Electronic ISSN: 2972-4414 Print ISSN: 3060-8562, Published by AccScience Publishing
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