[Prevention of psychiatric illness]

Prevention and early intervention in the field of mental health are recognized as key elements in minimizing the impact of any potentially serious mental health condition. However, early intervention in the field of young people's health is an objective that is underdeveloped. There are several possible avenues of prevention: selective preventive interventions for individuals whose risk of developing a mental disorder is significantly higher than the rest of the population, interventions for individuals who are no longer asymptomatic, secondary prevention strategies aimed at mitigating the onset of negative prognostic factors, and tertiary prevention strategies aimed at remedying resistance to treatment and psychosocial dysfunction. Epigenetics will undoubtedly be a promising area for the prevention of mental disorders in the future. Epigenetic processes, which can be modified by preventive measures such as physical activity, could lead to resilience to mental disorders. Finally, lifestyle factors (physical exercise, diet, smoking, lack of sleep) could also play a role in the emergence or prevention of mental illness.