The Refugee Crisis

The multitude of mental health disorders and the varying combination and severity of symptoms from person to person, makes identifying the causes of such wide ranging and complex conditions challenging to uncover. With around 1 in 4 being affected by mental or neurological disorders effecting emotions, thoughts, behaviours and physical wellbeing, coupled with the huge intricacies of the brain, amounts to thousands of avenues needing to be explored. There is not only the neurology behind mental health but also environmental and social factors which need to be considered; making the task of finding a cause that much more difficult.

There are, however, few concepts which could be significant in determining the biological roots of mental health. One approach involves the malfunctioning of the brain because of an irregular balance of neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and serotonin, which are the chemicals that allow communication between neurons (nerve cells). Many of these neurotransmitters regulate emotions and mood whilst also playing an essential role in all bodily processes. An imbalance in these, either producing too much or too little, can potentially lead to both physical and mental changes, such as depression and anxiety, but surely this cannot be solely to blame?

Mental health is hugely impacted by environmental and social factors, as I mentioned before. Scientists suggest that both your current environment and that of your upbringing, has or will affect your mental state. Normal human culture and societal practises affect your susceptibility to mental illnesses; these include everyday actions such as sleep deprivation, smoking and drinking alcohol. Social factors, such as lack of relaxation, support and healthy relationships, can impact the ability to cope with hardships and stresses. Current research suggests that these external pressures lead to a change in your epigenome - the compounds within us, which turn genes on or off, allowing cells to become specialised. The process of changing your epigenome affects which genes are on and off allowing stress to, literally, get under the skin.

Genetics have always been thought as a contributing factor towards mental health but now research focuses on the ‘p factor’ rather than individual genes. The ‘p factor’ is considered as an individual’s susceptibility to mental ill-health, not consisting of specific genes but the whole genome. The p factor puts us all on a continuum of mental health; showing the shared responsibility of thousands of genes behind disorders, each having small effects on mental health. It also allows us to recognise and understand the overlap between conditions. Being inheritable, the p factor explains why having a family member with a mental health disorder, not only increases the chances of developing that disorder, but increases your whole susceptibility to mental health conditions. Great! … However bleak this seems, this new generalised and overarching risk to mental health could prompt research into more effective treatments that work for a wider range of conditions, targeting the mechanisms and pathways of the p factor, potentially impacting the therapies of millions.

Whether or not you are a scientist (although you probably are if you have read this far), it is obvious that mental health is greatly impacted by your biological make up and, although these theories are not completely conclusive, they are moving us in the right direction. Understanding the significance of mental health in society and its underlying causes as well as reducing the stigma behind it will alleviate its impacts. It is clear to see the momentum behind this movement is gaining and all we need to do is to jump on board with it!

Angus Leech, L6 th

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