'Stiff upper lip' culture blamed as British men top Euro depression league

A study of mental illness in six countries found that the rate of major depression and panic syndrome was highest among males in the UK.

Professor Cary Cooper, president of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy, said British men were still hampered by a "stiff upper lip" approach to life.

He added: "One of the explanations for these findings is that men are less able to talk about their problems than women or express their emotions.

"They have less social support and, as a generalisation, men are less emotionally intelligent than women and have not traditionally been encouraged to share their feelings."

Professor Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster University, said Britain also had some of the longest working hours in Europe.

He added: "Britain's work culture has gone from nine-to-five to extremely long hours which make for very stressful working conditions.

"It's no wonder we're seeing high rates of psychological problems.

"The single biggest reason for claiming incapacity benefit - around 40 per cent of claimants - is mental illness and stress."

He was commenting on a study, headed by Professor Michael King of the Royal Free and University College Medical School, London, which looked at data from general practices in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Estonia and the Netherlands.

The study, published today in the British Journal of Psychiatry, found that men are most likely to suffer depression between the ages of 30 and 50, while panic attacks most frequently occur between 40 and 50.

The rankings for psychological disorders in women in the UK were not provided.

Professor Cooper said effective treatment was available for those with depression and anxiety.

He added: "I'm not just talking about pills, although medication may help in the shortterm.

"It's important to find out what is the underlying cause of the anxiety."