The study also found that self-harm among young people aged 10-19 was three times more common among girls than boys, with those who self-harmed at much greater risk of suicide than those who did not. Strikingly, the team found that, while the incidence of self-harm remained fairly constant between 2001 and 2014 among boys aged 10 to 19, as well as among girls aged 10 to 12, and 17 and older, incidence of reported self-harm among girls aged 13-16 increased 68% between 2011 and 2014. The findings chime with data from the NHS that recently showed a jump in hospital admissions following self-harm among girls under the age of 17. But, they add, it is unlikely that such factors alone explain the rise in reports of self-harm among 13- to 16-year-old girls. “If it was [just down to] greater awareness, then you would expect to see it in girls aged 10-12 and girls aged 17-19,” said Kapur.

Source: The Guardian October 18, 2017 22:30 UTC