More Russians mentally ill now than in Soviet days

MOSCOW, July 29 (Reuters) - Cases of mental illness among Russians have risen considerably in the decade since the collapse of Communism, mostly due to drug or alcohol abuse, Interfax news agency reported on Sunday.

Interfax said 300 Russians out of every 100,000 were now suffering mental health problems, compared to about 200 per 100,000 of the population 10 years ago.

Psychiatrist Tatyana Dmitriyeva, director of the Scientific Research Institute for psychiatry, said the biggest rise in cases had been among children and adolescents, Interfax reported.

Dmitriyeva said the increase in mental health problems was directly linked to a rise in drug abuse, alcoholism and solvent sniffing.

She said drug abuse in Russia had grown twelvefold between 1991 and 2000 and alcoholism fourfold.

Again, the trend was strongest among youngsters. While drug abuse had risen eightfold among adults between 1991 and 2000, it surged by a staggering 18 times among adolescents.

The number of suicides was also on the increase in the country, Dmitriyeva added.