At these workshops, however, men often begin by sketching football jerseys or their favorite teams, the medic said. Soon, those drawings become conversations about everyday anxieties \u2013 showing how sport can open doors that traditional mental health discussions often cannot.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the field, absolutely no one wins alone<\/strong>,\u201d Dr. Al Nahari said. \u201cPlayers depend on a whole ecosystem \u2013 defenders, midfielders, coaches, medics and fans in the stands \u2013 all having important roles. When we approach youth mental health, we require the exact same ecosystem<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n Speaking alongside\u00a0UN Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs Felipe Paullier<\/a> at UN Headquarters on Tuesday, Dr. Al Nahari highlighted how sport can improve youth mental health outcomes \u2013 and reduce stigma.<\/p>\n On Friday, just two days ahead of the Men\u2019s World Cup final across the river from Midtown Manhattan in New Jersey, the\u00a0UN Youth Office<\/a> will host young leaders, policymakers, civil society, athletes and more to\u00a0celebrate football as a catalyst for youth mental health<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n The event is part of the Youth Office\u2019s\u00a0flagship initiative on Youth Mental Health and Well-Being<\/a>, which aims to shift the conversation beyond clinical responses.<\/p>\n In February, a\u00a0UN report<\/a> found that one in seven people aged 10 to 19 has a mental health condition<\/strong>, 75 per cent of adult mental health conditions were already present by the mid-twenties and depression among adolescents and young adults has increased in recent years.<\/p>\n It noted that youth mental health is heavily shaped by a broad array of inequalities and social determinants \u2013 including education, employment, family dynamics, poverty, technology and societal attitudes \u2013 which all require cross-sectoral policies to address.<\/p>\n \u201cYoung people are navigating a very complex world with very unpredictable changes in terms of digital disruption, economic uncertainty, the consequences of armed conflict, displacement, and social isolation,\u201d Mr. Paullier said.<\/p>\n As a result, the\u00a0World Health Organization (WHO)<\/a>\u00a0recommends<\/a> interventions that build resilience, enhance alternatives to risky behaviours, integrate multiple delivery methods and promote supportive social environments.<\/p>\n One such intervention is youth participation in sport<\/strong>.<\/p>\n The same report found that playing team sports is associated with lower rates of depression and anxiety<\/strong>, regardless of country, but that many young people face barriers to meaningful participation in sport.<\/p>\n As the world\u2019s number one sport, the Youth Office says football can build belonging and social connection, strengthen emotional resilience, and promote inclusion and collective well-being<\/strong>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe that football and sports are a really powerful messenger, not only because of what they represent when they connect people because we know football legends can be strong messengers to transform narratives,\u201d Mr. Paullier said.<\/p>\n Both speakers emphasised that football is unique because it serves as a universal language that brings young people a sense of belonging.<\/p>\n Dr. Al Nahari stressed that youngsters are already building effective solutions to support each other\u2019s mental health, and that it is the duty of the UN and the international community to listen \u2013 and become productive partners with them.<\/p>\n \u201cThe most important players are the youth themselves,\u201d she said. \u201cThey are not waiting on the sidelines to be saved<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n The\u00a0\u201cOne World, One Game, One Goal\u201d event<\/a> on Friday shows football\u2019s ability to address social isolation, but it is just one example of the UN\u2019s multisectoral approach to addressing youth mental health around the world.<\/p>\n For example, the WHO<\/a> and\u00a0UN Children\u2019s Fund (UNICEF)<\/a> provide evidence-based frameworks to help governments implement effective psychosocial support programs in schools through the\u00a0Helping Adolescents Thrive (HAT)<\/a> initiative.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to use not only sports,\u201d Mr. Paullier said. \u201cWe want to meet young people where they are.\u201d<\/p>\n On top of the UN\u2019s efforts to bring awareness to youth mental health and support implementation programmes, Mr. Paullier said the world must do a better job playing a supporting role with funding<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Most countries allocate less than two per cent of their annual health budgets to mental health, creating a $200 billion financing gap<\/strong>,\u00a0according to the WHO<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cBehind these figures, there\u2019s actually millions of young people that are carrying a pain that is often unseen, unspoken and unsupported,\u201d Mr. Paullier said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At these workshops, however, men often begin by sketching football jerseys or their favorite teams, the medic said. Soon, those drawings become conversations about everyday anxieties \u2013 showing how sport can open doors that traditional mental health discussions often cannot. \u201cOn the field, absolutely no one wins alone,\u201d Dr. Al Nahari said. \u201cPlayers depend on 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GLOBAL NEWS<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"At these workshops, however, men often begin by sketching football jerseys or their favorite teams, the medic said. Soon, those drawings become conversations about everyday anxieties \u2013 showing how sport can open doors that traditional mental health discussions often cannot. \u201cOn the field, absolutely no one wins alone,\u201d Dr. Al Nahari said. \u201cPlayers depend on…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36962","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36962"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36962\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36964,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36962\/revisions\/36964"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36962"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36962"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/design-providers.com\/rise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36962"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Youth struggles<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Mental game<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Football is not enough<\/strong><\/h2>\n