Almost two in three young people in Ireland would visit a website for support if going through a tough time, new research has found.

According to the findings, seeking support online is more popular than speaking to parents, health professionals or calling a helpline.

The research was carried out by ReachOut.com, Ireland's online youth mental health service, which provides support to young people aged between 12 and 25 years. It has published a review of its first five years in operation - 2011-2015.

This revealed that 62% of young people would visit a website for support when going through a tough time, compared to 38% who would speak to a health professional, 28% who would speak to a parent or guardian and 14% who would call a helpline.

"It's clear that more young people are looking for support online. This highlights the importance of providing a comprehensive and trusted support hub online for young people to turn to when they need it, and that's what ReachOut aims to do," commented ReachOut CEO, Elaine Geraghty.

ReachOut has also announced details of its fourth annual 'Technology for Wellbeing' conference, which aims to discuss the increasingly large role technology plays in modern life. This will be attended by a wide range of people including health managers, policy makers, researchers and people working in the technology sector.

"After the success of the Technology for Wellbeing International conference over the last three years, we are delighted to be hosting it again in 2016. We want the conference to become the place for a robust discussion around how we can harness the power of technology for good to help and support our young people, as so often online is the place where there can be so much negativity and danger," Ms Geraghty said.

The conference will take place in the Marker Hotel in Dublin on September 14. For more information, click here

For more information on ReachOut, click here