A healthy mind in a healthy body: promoting mental health in the pandemic and beyond

What are the costs of poor mental health?    

Mental health is a lifetime commitment for me. Good mental health is also the foundation for a happy, fulfilled and productive life. Yet, as many as one in six people in the EU have struggled with a mental health issue, according to the Health at a Glance Europe 2018 report. 

People living with mental illness are at a disadvantage. They experience challenges both at school and work and are more likely to be unemployed, which may also be detrimental to their physical health. For some, mental illnesses can even lead to premature mortality: over 84 000 deaths across EU countries in 2015 were linked to mental health problems.  

Mental health challenges range from eating disorders, anxiety and depression to obsessive-compulsive behaviours, autism and bipolar disorder. Not only do these conditions affect and disrupt lives, but they are also a burden to the health system while adding social security costs and reducing employment and productivity. The Health at a Glance Europe 2018 report estimated the total costs of mental illness at more than 4% of the GDP across the 28 EU countries. That is more than EUR 600 billion, and that figure has grown.  

The economic fall-out and stress-related issues linked to the pandemic will be with us for some time. Health systems, still overburdened by COVID-19 related urgencies, may not be able to respond adequately or improve their mental health services soon. On top of this, early reports are coming in of considerable psychiatric and neurological damage in patients diagnosed with COVID-19. 

How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected people’s mental health?   

For nearly a year and a half now, our physical health, our livelihoods, and our economies have been turned upside down by COVID-19. 

COVID-19 has created continual, long-term stress and affected us all. We have lost loved ones, we are missing friends and family, we feel anxious about our health, livelihoods and future. Each wave of virus infections has presented new challenges. I would even say that behind all of this, an unseen mental health emergency is sweeping across the European Union and beyond. Like a silent pandemic. 

Many people from these more vulnerable groups were able to share their experiences at a conference we organised earlier this month on ‘Mental Health and the pandemic: living, caring, acting!’ The discussion was not limited to the problems they face, but to their coping mechanisms and other helpful strategies. We have gathered their contributions and posted them on our website as a resource and inspiration, adding to the wealth of mental health best practices available through the Best Practice Portal, which is managed by the Steering Group on Health Promotion, Disease Prevention and Management of Non-Communicable Diseases. The European Commission’s Health Policy Platform, too, is a valuable resource for mental health, and other, stakeholders to network and exchange ideas. 

We have in fact been working with EU countries and stakeholders for over 15 years to promote mental health, prevent mental illness and improve access to treatment. Together, we’ve built a solid base that can withstand even the pressures of a pandemic, which we can place reliance on in the future.  

Health is taking on increasing importance at the Commission with the Health Union and the EU4Health financial programme. How is mental health reflected in the EU’s ambitions?   

It is among our aims that the new EU4Health programme includes targeted actions to address mental health in schools, support to health professionals as well as to increase awareness. Through the current Health Programme, the Commission will co-fund a new Joint Action on Mental Health with up to EUR 5 million to transfer and implement two selected best practices: a mental health system reform that supports community-based services, and a national suicide prevention programme. This project is scheduled to start this year. 

In addition, we are already working on ways to change our thinking about mental illness. We want to end the stigma. That’s why we have not forgotten mental health in the ongoing work with Member States and in the European Pillar of Social Rights. 

We’ve all heard the saying “Mens sana in corpore sano” - ‘a healthy mind in a healthy body’. Too often, we neglect the ‘healthy mind’ part. Let’s change that.