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| AGRICULTURE AND MENTAL HEALTH | | | Dr. Parveen Kumar | 3/31/2021 12:11:38 AM |
| | Agriculture is the backbone of Indian economy. From a ship to mouth economy to self sufficiency and surpluses, the agriculture sector in the country has made rapid strides. Today the country is leading producer of many commodities, is second in the world in terms of food grains production and also a leading exporter of many commodities. China is next to us in food grain production and United States of America follows us. Besides food grains production the country has also the largest livestock population. Today the country has achieved self sufficiency owing to green revolution, white revolution and blue revolution collectively called as the 'evergreen revolution'. All this has been achieved by the hard work of our farming community who work round the clock in the intense heat as well as scorching heat ultimately to ensure food as well as nutritional security for all of us. Food production is not an easy job and an affair as simple as it looks like. Farmer has to take care and manage so many aspects of crop production and worry about so many things many of which are not under his control. This puts the farmer under undue stress. All this unfortunately affects the mental health of our farmers and this has been reported by a number of studies conducted across the world. Mental health is our emotional, psychological and social well-being. The status of our mental health has an impact on our thoughts, moods and behaviour. Studies have identified several occupational stressors that are unique to farming communities and that are potentially harmful to mental health and wellbeing of the farming community. In Australia, for example prolonged drought in rural and remote regions is considered as one of the key factors influencing psychological distress and poor well being of the farming community. Farming is associated with a range of physical and mental health risks because of the hard work under challenging conditions. A range of occupational stresses result in various symptoms for farmers' such as physical problems (e.g., headaches, sleep problems and weight change), mental health problems (e.g., anxiety, anger, depression), and cognitive issues (e.g., memory loss, inability to make decisions). Also, an increase in farm debt of farmers' increases the likelihood of being in the high level of psychological distress by 5 percentage points and the very high level of distress by 3 percentage points. Studies have found that financial problems are the most common issue associated with farming stress. A study in United Kingdom revealed that mental health issues are now affecting one in four people every year. That's 14 million people in the UK, and the farming industry is no outlier to these statistics. Illness rates among agricultural workers are not encouraging. In fact, they are 46% higher than the industry averages, with the most common mental illnesses including anxiety and depression. Research led by Farm Safety Foundation revealed 81% of farmers aged 40 say mental ill-health is the biggest hidden problem faced by our community today and 92% of farmers now report that the promotion of good mental health is vital. These occupational hazards associated with farming are well recognized and can have impacts on both physical as well as mental health. For example, farmers in the United Kingdom (UK), United States (US), Australia, Finland, and Norway are reported to experience high levels or risk of stress, anxiety, depression, psychological distress, and psychological morbidity. This level of stress affects different genders differently. A study by Booth and Lloyd revealed that female farmers in the UK reported higher scores for stress, depression, and anxiety than their male counterparts. In a similar study Brumby et al. reported female farmers in Australia having scored higher in psychological distress than male farmers as well as gender differences in mental health outcomes in the general population. Females are reported to face numerous unique challenges in farming that can negatively impact their wellness. More among farmers thought that life was not worth living than non farmers. Farmers are at higher risk for mental health challenges. Well-being of all of us encompasses a good mental health as well as wider positive and negative aspects, including a person's subjective impression of their life and objective factors such as financial security and family support. Farmers often live and work at the same place too. This means there is little chance to escape workload and benefit from a change of scenery to offer that needed breathing space. The long hours, regularly in isolation pose both physical and mental threats; financial strains due to various costs associated with agriculture with an often poor return on capital which has all the potential to generate additional stressors. This along with the uncertain weather patterns, natural calamities and the political uncertainties all make the farmers prone to mental stress. Maintaining a good mental health of the farmers has thus become a priority and this is also necessary if we are to ensure sufficient food production for all of us. This can be done by enabling an ecosystem where the farmer does not has to suffer for lack of critical inputs at the time of sowing or harvesting, where the farmer has a say in what will be the fate of his produce and where the farmers' efforts are duly recognized and acknowledged. |
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