BRUSSELS – One Belgian person in 16 suffers from depression, two Flemish newspapers reported on Thursday.

Citing recent official statistics, Het Niewsblad and Het Volk said the number of people using anti-depressants increased by 9 percent in 2003 compared to the previous year.

Compared to 1997, the number of Belgians taking medication for depression has rocketed by 40 percent, the two newspapers added.

[Copyright Expatica News 2004]

Subject: Belgian news