HONG KONG, CHINA – Media OutReach – 27 March 2019 – The Annual Happiness Index Study from CSG HONG KONG found that 46% of youth aged 18-24 in Hong Kong are suffering from stress (see Fig. 1):
- Correspondingly, the research also found that young people rated low in their physical health, mental health and fitness.
- More than 70% of them felt that there was not enough care for youth of Hong Kong.
The high stress level has serious impacts on youth’s health, both physically and psychologically.
IMPACTS ON PHYSICAL HEALTH
42% of Hong Kong youth (18 — 24 years old) feel that they are not fit (see Fig. 2) and this is higher than 34% of all adults surveyed.
As a result of a stressful life, 44% of 18-to-24-year olds said that they “had very little exercise” or “never exercised” in the past year (see Fig. 3), a number which was higher than the average (34%).
The lack of exercise among young people has also impact on how they feel about their weight. Over half of young people (52%) reported their weight as “very poor” or “quite poor” (see Fig. 4), compared to only 37% of all adults who are satisfied with their weight.
IMPACTS ON PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH
Other than the physical aspect, it is not surprising to find in the survey that more than one-thirds (35%) of youth claimed that they had “very poor” or “quite poor” mood (see Fig. 5), this is about 10% more than the Hong Kong general population (26%). This is definitely a concern when one-third of the youth population are suffering from poor psychological health.
In addition, the survey has found that 15% of the Hong Kong youth are drinking “a lot” and “fairly often” (see Fig.6), which is higher than the 11% of the adult population. The government and youth organization need to keep an eye on the drinking problem among youth by providing more information on the effects of drinking.
SUPPORTING HONG KONG YOUTH
Given the level of stress that youth is feeling, over two-thirds of Hong Kong youth (73%) agreed that there was not enough care and support to help them (see Fig. 7) which was much higher than the general population of 63% in Hong Kong.
Despite the fact that they did not get enough support, they are still willing to show their care to the society. 44% of them have joined the voluntary work in the past 12 months, significantly higher than the 34% of the general population in Hong Kong (see Fig. 8). The society should pay more attention on the youth, in order to understand their thoughts and difficulties so as to strengthen social harmony.
According to Winnie Poon, Executive Director of CSG HONG KONG, “youths are the pillars of our future, it is worrying to see them suffering from stress and health problems. In order to continue building up prosperity in Hong Kong, it is of the foremost priority for the government and youth organisations to take some effective measures to help them.”
