A STUDY of abused Asian women in Manchester has revealed a catalogue of mental health problems.

Investigators spoke to women from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh backgrounds who had reported suffering abuse at home.

They found victims were more likely to have sleeping and eating problems and depression, suffer from panic attacks, and self-harm.

Half of the 72 women polled had suffered physical violence from husbands and many were victims of forced marriages.

They also had to deal with controlling behaviour, being cut off from friends and family, and abuse from in-laws.

The study was carried out by the University of Central Lancashire and Manchester help group Saheli for Asian women who suffer domestic abuse.

The majority of victims attempted to get help, contacting doctors, police, or social workers at least six times on average.

But many had difficulty making their problems understood.

Researchers found although local GPs were normally the first port of call, the language barrier and cultural misunderstandings meant that women didn't always get help.

The report said: "Women's experiences indicate that GPs frequently engaged with the symptoms presented to them but not their causes."

It said GPs often offered medication but not counselling and were not consistent in giving south Asian women advice on how to get help dealing with domestic violence.

And the majority said they had not found the police helpful.

The report said: "Just under two-thirds of the women remained dissatisfied because of the failure of the police to take any action against the perpetrator, take the woman's statement, use interpreters where needed and offer appropriate referrals."

Some were worried about reporting violence because of their immigration status.

Women from overseas who are married to British citizens must be with their partners for at least two years before they can make an application for indefinite leave to stay.

The M.E.N reported last year how new laws to protect people forced to marry against their will were being introduced.

The Forced Marriage Act allows judges to ban a family from contacting the victim or preventing a victim leaving the country if they fear they could be forced to marry abroad.

Ministers introduced the measures in a bid to avoid a repeat of the tragedy of Warrington schoolgirl Shafilea Ahmed who died after telling friends of her fears of being forced into marriage.

The 17-year-old vanished in September 2003 and her body was found in the Lake District five months later. A coroner concluded she had been the victim of a `vile murder' but nobody has ever been charged.

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