SKINT students are more at risk of suffering from depression and alcohol dependency, according to findings revealed yesterday.

Symptoms worsened over time for those who were struggling to pay bills, a study by University of Southampton and Solent NHS Trust found.

The report — published in the online Community Mental Health Journal — found that students drink alcohol to help block out financial stresses but that this tends to lead to more hardship.

Occupational therapy student Andy Jones stopped studying because money troubles triggered depression, and extreme stress prevented him from working part-time.

More than 400 undergraduates were asked to assess finances including family wealth, debt and attitudes towards money at four points across their first year at university.

This is so they could establish whether money issues or poor mental health came first for them.

Students who had considered not going to university or had thought of dropping out for financial reasons had a greater deterioration in mental health over time, the study also found.

National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts spokeswoman Hope Worsdale said it is “well-established” that money troubles are strongly linked to mental health problems.

She said: “Student support services on campuses have noted increases in usage of counselling services which coincide with hikes in student debt.

“As rents and living costs continue to rise, we are seeing the crisis of student poverty worsen significantly and with that comes incredibly damaging impacts on mental wellbeing.

“That’s one of the many reasons why we campaign for education which is debt-free.”