One in 10 teenage girls deliberately harm themselves each year and the problem is far more widespread than previously thought, according to a study on Wednesday.

In a survey of more than 6,000 school pupils aged 15 and 16, researchers found that girls are four times more likely to have engaged in self-harm than boys.

Eleven percent of girls and 3 percent of boys reported that they had harmed themselves within the last year.

Previous estimates for the amount self-harm in the country were based on the 25,000 “presentations” at hospitals in England and Wales each year that are the result of deliberate self-poisoning or self-injury amongst teenagers.

However, the research, by academics from the universities of Bath and Oxford, has found that only 13 percent of self-harming incidents reported by the pupils had resulted in a hospital visit.

Although poisoning is the most common form of self-harm reported in hospitals, the study revealed that cutting was the more prevalent form of self-harm (64.5 percent), followed by overdosing (31 per cent).

“The study shows that deliberate self-harm is common amongst teenagers in England, especially in girls who are four times more likely to self-harm than boys,” said Dr Karen Rodham from the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath.

“Until now, most studies of deliberate self-harm in adolescents in the UK have been based on the cases that reach hospital.

“We have found that the true extent of self-harm in England is significantly wider than that.”

Professor Keith Hawton from the Centre for Suicide Research at the University of Oxford, who directed the project, said the study would help devise ways of addressing the problem and identifying those at most risk.

“In many cases, self-harming behaviour represents a transient period of distress, but for others it is an important indicator of mental health problems and a risk of suicide,” he said in a statement.

COMMON MOTIVES

The study showed the most frequent motive expressed by both males and females was as a means of coping with distress.

For both sexes there was an increase in deliberate self-harm with increased consumption of cigarettes or alcohol, and all categories of drug use.

Self-harm was more common in pupils who had been bullied and was strongly associated with physical and sexual abuse in both sexes.

The majority of those who said they harmed themselves said it was an impulsive act rather than something they had thought about for a long time.

The vast majority of pupils said their friends were the people they felt that they could talk to about things that bothered them and those who had harmed themselves most often turned to friends.

“This responsibility places a great burden on adolescents to support their peers, yet most adolescents have not in any way been coached in how best to do this,” said Hawton.

“Attention to this aspect of support for adolescents should be an essential part of mental health education in schools, and it is great to see the development of the wellness programmes currently being trialled in some schools.