research by the ICS of the University of Navarra urges the development of prevention and promotion programs for the mental health of students.

"University is a stressful life stage academically, but also because for many it is the passage to adulthood, some students become independent and move cities and even countries or continents." Therefore, "universities should be aware that they are in a vulnerable period. This can help them to develop specific programs to prevent and intervene in pathologies such as anxiety or depression". Ursula Paiva, researcher of the Mind-braingroup of the Institute for Culture and Society (ICS) of the University of Navarra and first author of the graduate study, points out Prevalence of mental disorder symptoms among university students: An umbrella review. 

The work, published in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviewsgathers data from a sample of 8 million young people from all continents by combining previous results from more than 60 review programs of study . 

In her analysis, she considers it a core topic "to institute specific programs for the prevention and promotion of mental health on campus ". This is the case of Compass, the Health and Wellness Unit promoted at the University of Navarra in which the expert collaborates.

Anxiety, depression and sleep disorders

40% of the world's university students suffer from mild anxiety symptoms and 35% from depression, while 16.7% and 13% present severe symptoms. This is revealed by Paiva's research , which analyzes the prevalence of some mental disorders in Degree and postgraduate program students around the world. Sleep disorders, especially insomnia, also have a high prevalence: 13% suffer from severe symptoms and 41% of those with mild symptoms.

The study also reveals data on suicide: 10.7% of the young participants have had suicidal ideations in the last year, a figure that rises to 20% if analyzed in relation to their entire life. Likewise, 1.37% have made suicide attempts in the last twelve months and 3.34% in their lifetime.

"There are many programs of study and meta-analyses that obtain prevalences for a specific disorder or country. We wanted to provide a global overview," explains researcher Ursula Paiva. The study has also observed the existing differences in countries with different per capita incomes: in countries with higher incomes, a higher prevalence of anxiety and depression disorders is observed, while in those with lower incomes the issue of students who have had suicidal ideations in the last year increases. "Overall, one in four people will suffer from a mental disorder in their lifetime, but the prevalence is much higher in university students," he stresses. 

Likewise, the analysis has focused on the programs of study carried out during and after the Covid-19 pandemic, with the goal of observing whether or not the percentage of people suffering from these pathologies has increased. "Fundamentally, we have found a significant increase in symptoms of depression and sleep disorders," he points out.