Pubdate: Mon, 11 Jul 2005 Source: Monitor, The (Uganda) Copyright: 2005 The Monitor. Contact: http://www.monitor.co.ug/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2934 Author: Al-Mahdi Ssenkabirwa, Kampala Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis) ALCOHOL, DRUGS MAJOR CAUSE OF MENTAL ILLNESS EXCESSIVE consumption of alcohol and narcotic drugs are said to be the major causes of mental illnesses. The Ministry of Health Director for Clinical and Community Services, Dr Sam Zaramba, said although people are encouraged to change their habits, many of them have continued to drink alcohol and consume illegal drugs like Marijuana. According to a United Nations Human Development Report issued last year, Uganda spent $145million on alcohol. "We really still have a big burden to bring down the prevalence of mental illnesses. The issue of alcohol and drug abuse is seriously finishing us and the people of Butabika can tell you this," he said. Zaramba was speaking at the opening of the 3rd National Stakeholder's Forum organised by Basic Needs UK (BUU) in Kampala last Friday. BUU is an international NGO aimed at ensuring that the basic needs and rights of mentally ill people throughout the world are respected. This comes days after it was announced that Uganda ranks number one in the consumption of alcohol. Report According to the 2004 Global Status Report on alcohol released recently by World Health Organisation (WHO), Ugandans consume alcohol at a rate of 19.74 litres per capita and Luxembourg follows at a rate of 17.54 litres per capita. Zaramba commended BUU for working closely with his ministry in ensuring that the needs and rights of mentally ill persons are upheld. "As Ministry of Health, we really appreciate Basic needs UK's role in this area and we hope with that approach a lot will be done to reduce the problem," he said. Recently, BUU released a report showing that 1.47million people out of the total 26.8million Ugandans suffer from severe mental illnesses, and psychiatrists believe the number might be higher. According to Dr. Margaret Mungerera, a senior psychiatrist at Butabika Hospital, the number of people with mental disorders is likely to be high because the BUU study did not cover the whole country. The study only covered the districts of Kampala, Masaka, Hoima Sembabule and Masindi. Uganda has a total of 56 districts. "Basing on what we see, the country might even be having a bigger number of psychiatric victims. Take example of poverty among the people, the northern Uganda war and the changed lifestyle, all these can cause mental disorders," Mungerera said recently. The BUU study was started in 2002 to determine whether Uganda would be eligible to initiate a mental health and development programme. - --- MAP posted-by: Beth