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Social, Behavioural and Cultural Factors

Introduction

The leading cause of disability and the highest-burden of non-fatal illnesses is mental health disorders for women in Australia (Begg et al. 2008, Commonwealth of Australia, 2010). In Australia in 2007, 43% of women (3.5 million) had experienced a mental illness at some time. Also, Australian women are more likely than men to have experienced symptoms of a mental disorder during the previous years according to a study conducted in 2015(22% of women compared to 18% of men although men have a higher lifetime prevalence), with young women reporting the highest rates (30% for women aged 16 to 24) (ABS 2012). Women are more likely than men to have (or report symptoms of) the following conditions:

1. anxiety disorders – 18% (11% of men) (AIHW 2014);

2. affective disorder such as depression - 7% (5% of men) (AIHW, 2014);

3. eating disorders – 15% of young women have had a....