3 ms·

In the UK, lockdowns doubled mental health referrals amongst young people [1] and there was a sharp increase in alcohol related deaths [2]. I hope they don't r

In the UK, lockdowns doubled mental health referrals amongst young people [1] and there was a sharp increase in alcohol related deaths [2]. I hope they don't return, given we now have a vaccine. I also doubt their efficacy, with cases declining in some cases before lockdowns began. They are not a cost-free public health tool, and it is unknown whether they have caused more harm than good. [1] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/15/young-mental-health-referrals-double-in-england-after-lockdown https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/15/young-mental... [2] https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/15/surge-in-alcohol-related-deaths-in-england-during-lockdown-report-finds https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/jul/15/surge-in-alc...

JadeNB 5y ago
> They are not a cost-free public health tool, and it is unknown whether they have caused more harm than good. That is a good point, but it's not that we're weighing which of two decisions is good, only which is less bad. Certainly the laissez faire attitudes many places in the US, including my residence, have taken to dealing with the problem have also been not cost-free, and to say that it is unknown whether they have caused more harm than good seems to me to be a dramatic understatement.
- heurisko 5y ago
  I was pro-lockdown when we didn't have the vaccine, but don't know if all the measures the UK took were necessary to contain the virus, or if, on balance, certain policies didn't cause more harm than good. For example, public exercise with other people was banned, even though open air transmissibility is low, and exercise improves mental health and coronavirus outcomes. What also happened, in addition to the above, is that people also avoided hospital treatment, and other illnesses, such as cancer, were deprioritised. These included young people, who would have not have been statistically at risk of coronavirus, but died unintentionally due to conditions caused by lockdown policies. In this case, quality of life adjusted years becomes relevant, and you have to justify measures taken primarily to protect the old, over being able to treat the young. Of course when I say "lockdown" it will have has different meanings, depending on which country one lives in. I think certainly some lockdown policies have done more harm than good, even though given another pandemic, I would support other lockdown policies, like banning large indoor gatherings.

JadeNB 5y ago

> They are not a cost-free public health tool, and it is unknown whether they have caused more harm than good. That is a good point, but it's not that we're weighing which of two decisions is good, only which is less bad. Certainly the laissez faire attitudes many places in the US, including my residence, have taken to dealing with the problem have also been not cost-free, and to say that it is unknown whether they have caused more harm than good seems to me to be a dramatic understatement.

heurisko 5y ago
I was pro-lockdown when we didn't have the vaccine, but don't know if all the measures the UK took were necessary to contain the virus, or if, on balance, certain policies didn't cause more harm than good. For example, public exercise with other people was banned, even though open air transmissibility is low, and exercise improves mental health and coronavirus outcomes. What also happened, in addition to the above, is that people also avoided hospital treatment, and other illnesses, such as cancer, were deprioritised. These included young people, who would have not have been statistically at risk of coronavirus, but died unintentionally due to conditions caused by lockdown policies. In this case, quality of life adjusted years becomes relevant, and you have to justify measures taken primarily to protect the old, over being able to treat the young. Of course when I say "lockdown" it will have has different meanings, depending on which country one lives in. I think certainly some lockdown policies have done more harm than good, even though given another pandemic, I would support other lockdown policies, like banning large indoor gatherings.