Depression a health issue, not a stigma

ACCORDING TO a senior official of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, China had about 5.4 million people with major depressive disorder, otherwise known as clinical depression, at the end of last year. Southern Metropolis Daily commented on Thursday:

Already a major mental health issue which the World Health Organization estimates could kill more than 1 million people every year, clinical depression is on the rise among Chinese citizens. About 200,000 sufferers of the mental health disorder commit suicide each year in China. The number could be higher, as others who commit suicide may not have been diagnosed as suffering from clinical depression.

Between 2011 and 2015, sales of anti-depressant drugs soared to more than 5.6 billion yuan ($810 million) from 2.5 billion yuan. Last year it reached 6 billion yuan.