Nearly 1.2 billion people had a mental disorder in 2023. That is 95.5 percent more than in 1990, according to a study published Thursday in The Lancet. In 1990 the estimate was 599 million cases. In 2023 it was 1.17 billion.
Anxiety and depression made up most of the climb. Anxiety cases rose from 182 million to 470 million, and major depressive disorder from 102 million to 236 million. Measured against 1990, anxiety is up 158 percent and depression 131 percent. Researchers from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation and the University of Queensland looked at 12 disorders across 204 countries and territories, drawing on the 2023 Global Burden of Disease study. Every one of the 12 increased.
Lead author Dr. Damian Santomauro said he “was honestly shocked at the magnitude.” The authors wrote that the world is “entering an even more concerning phase of worsening mental disorder burden globally.”
Teenagers carry the peak
The burden peaked among 15- to 19-year-olds. Santomauro said that is a first in the history of the Global Burden of Disease study. “We have historically always seen this peak in middle-age,” he said.
Co-author Dr. Alize Ferrari called it a critical development period that can shape education, employment and relationships. Dr. Robert Trestman, a psychiatry chair at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine who was not part of the study, said interrupted development can have long-term repercussions. As for why, Santomauro said there is little data on the causes among young people.
Women were more affected overall: 620 million women lived with a mental disorder in 2023, against 552 million men. Autism, ADHD, conduct disorder, personality disorders and unexplained intellectual disability were more common in males.
Mental disorders were the fifth leading cause of lost healthy years in 2023, up from 12th in 1990. They accounted for 171 million years in total.
Reading the numbers with care
Experts pointed to both good and bad reasons for the rise. Trestman said stigma has dropped and people are more willing to come forward. Dr. Arthur Evans of the American Psychological Association said detection and diagnosis have improved. Population growth and longer lives also play a part.
Professor Philip Batterham of the Australian National University urged caution. Raw numbers climb as populations grow, he said, and age-standardised rates give a better picture. Many of the studies behind such estimates rely on self-reported symptoms, which is not the same as a diagnosis, so some figures may run high. He noted that the largest increases appeared in low- and middle-income countries.
Paul Bolton of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who was not involved, said nobody knows how accurate the estimates are. They are, he said, “the best we have.”
The authors wrote that the increase “has not been accompanied by proportional expansion of mental health services.” Santomauro and the other experts say anyone struggling should talk to a professional about therapies, medication and other support. They also recommend attention to diet, social connection, exercise, sleep, hobbies and work-life balance.
Sources
- Nearly 1.2 billion people worldwide are living with mental disorders | CNN
- Global mental health disorder cases double in three decades
- 1.2 Billion Reasons to Start the Conversation: The Global Mental Health Crisis Africa Cannot Ignore – Convo Africa
- Global mental health
