🕷️ Crawler Inspector

[Our World in Data](https://ourworldindata.org/) [](https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/global-development)[](https://www.ox.ac.uk/)[](https://global-change-data-lab.org/) - Browse by topic - [Data](https://ourworldindata.org/search) - [Insights](https://ourworldindata.org/data-insights) - Resources - About Search for a topic, chart or article... Subscribe [Donate](https://ourworldindata.org/donate) # Mental Health By [Saloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/team/saloni-dattani), [Lucas Rodés-Guirao](https://ourworldindata.org/team/lucas-rodes-guirao), [Hannah Ritchie](https://ourworldindata.org/team/hannah-ritchie), and [Max Roser](https://ourworldindata.org/team/max-roser) [Cite this work](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#article-citation) [Reuse this work](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#article-licence) - [Introduction](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#introduction) - [Research & Writing](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#research-writing) - [Charts](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#all-charts) Mental health is an essential part of people’s lives and society. Poor mental health affects our well-being, our ability to work, and our relationships with friends, family, and community. Mental health conditions are not uncommon. Hundreds of millions suffer from them yearly, and many more do over their lifetimes. It’s estimated that [1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men](https://ourworldindata.org/depression-lifetime-risk) will experience major depression in their lives. Other conditions, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, are less common but still have a [large impact](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness) on people’s lives. Mental illnesses are treatable, and the impact they have can be reduced. Despite this, treatment is often lacking or poor quality, and many feel uncomfortable sharing their symptoms with healthcare professionals or people they know. This also makes it [difficult to estimate](https://ourworldindata.org/how-do-researchers-study-the-prevalence-of-mental-illnesses) the actual prevalence of mental illnesses. To support them, it’s essential to have good data to understand these conditions – how, when, and why they occur, how many people are affected by them, and how they can be treated effectively and safely. On this page, we show data on the prevalence of mental illnesses and their burden, and people’s attitudes toward mental health. #### Related topics - [Burden of Disease](https://ourworldindata.org/burden-of-disease) - [Financing Healthcare](https://ourworldindata.org/financing-healthcare) - [Suicides](https://ourworldindata.org/suicide) # Research & Writing [How do researchers study the prevalence of mental illnesses?Saloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/how-do-researchers-study-the-prevalence-of-mental-illnesses) [How are mental illnesses defined?Saloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/how-are-mental-illnesses-defined) ## More articles on Mental Health [Depression is complicated – this is how our understanding of the condition has evolved over timeSaloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/what-is-depression) [At what age do people experience depression for the first time?Saloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/depression-age-of-onset) [What is the lifetime risk of depression?Saloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/depression-lifetime-risk) [August 26, 2024Antipsychotic medications: a timeline of innovations and remaining challengesSaloni Dattani](https://ourworldindata.org/antipsychotic-medications-timeline) # Key Charts on Mental Health [See all charts on this topic](https://ourworldindata.org/data?topics=Mental+Health) - [Burden of disease from each category of mental illness](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness) - [Mental illnesses prevalence](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/mental-illnesses-prevalence) - [Share who report lifetime anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-who-report-lifetime-anxiety-or-depression) - [Age when first had anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/age-when-first-had-anxiety-depression) - [Anorexia or bulimia nervosa estimated cases](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anorexia-bulimia-nervosa-estimated-cases) - [Dealt with anxiety or depression by engaging in religious/spiritual activities](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/dealt-with-anxiety-depression-religious-spiritual) - [Dealt with anxiety or depression by taking prescribed medication](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/dealt-with-anxiety-depression-took-prescribed-medication) - [Dealt with anxiety or depression by talking to friends or family](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/dealt-with-anxiety-depression-friends-family) - [Depressive disorders prevalence vs. GDP per capita](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-vs-gdp-per-capita) - [Depressive disorders prevalence, IHME vs. WHO](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-ihme-vs-who) - [Depressive symptoms across the US population](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-symptoms-across-us-population) - [Estimated prevalence vs. burden of mental illnesses](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/estimated-prevalence-vs-burden-mental-illnesses) - [How do people deal with anxiety or depression around the world?](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/dealing-with-anxiety-depression-comparison) Country comparison - [How do people deal with anxiety or depression?](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/dealing-with-anxiety-depression-approaches) World - [Mental health and substance use disorders death rate by age group](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/death-rates-from-mental-and-substance-disorders-by-age-who) WHO - [Mental health units in general hospitals](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/mental-health-units-in-general-hospitals) - [Mental illness: estimated cases](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/mental-illness-estimated-cases) by country - [Number of countries with underlying data on the prevalence of mental illnesses](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/number-of-countries-with-primary-data-on-prevalence-of-mental-illnesses-in-the-global-burden-of-disease-study) - [Perceived comfort speaking about anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/perceived-comfort-speaking-anxiety-depression) - [Perceived discomfort speaking about anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/discomfort-speaking-anxiety-depression) - [Perceived discomfort speaking about anxiety or depression, by gender](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/discomfort-speaking-anxiety-depression-by-gender) - [Perceived importance of government funding for research on anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/importance-government-funding-research-anxiety-depression) - [Perceived importance of national funding for anxiety/depression research vs. GDP per capita](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/extremely-important-fund-research-anxiety-depression-vs-gdp-per-capita) - [Perceived importance of science in treating anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/importance-science-treating-anxiety-depression) - [Perceived importance of science in treating anxiety or depression vs. GDP per capita](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/science-helps-a-lot-treating-anxiety-depression-vs-gdp-per-capita) - [Psychiatrists per 100,000 people](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/psychiatrists-working-in-the-mental-health-sector) - [Share of people living with depressive disorders](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-ihme) - [Share of people living with depressive disorders, males vs. females](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-males-vs-females) - [Share of people living with schizophrenia, by age](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/schizophrenia-prevalence-by-age) - [Share of people living with schizophrenia, males vs. females](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/schizophrenia-prevalence-males-vs-females) - [Share of people who have depressive disorders, by age](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-by-age) - [Share of population with anxiety disorders vs. GDP per capita](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence-vs-gdp) - [Share of the population with an eating disorder](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/eating-disorders-prevalence) - [Share of the population with an eating disorder, by age](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/eating-disorders-prevalence-by-age) - [Share of the population with an eating disorder, males vs. females](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/eating-disorders-prevalence-males-vs-females) - [Share of the population with anxiety disorders](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence) - [Share of the population with anxiety disorders, by age](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence-by-age) - [Share of the population with anxiety disorders, males vs. females](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence-males-vs-females) - [Share of the population with bipolar disorder](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/bipolar-disorder-prevalence) - [Share of the population with bipolar disorder, by age](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/bipolar-disorder-prevalence-by-age) - [Share of the population with bipolar disorder, males vs. females](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/bipolar-disorder-prevalence-males-vs-females) - [Share of the population with schizophrenia](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/schizophrenia-prevalence) - [Share who know friends or family who have been anxious or depressed](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/friends-family-anxious-depressed) - [Share who know friends or family who have been anxious or depressed, by gender](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/men-women-friends-family-anxious-depressed) - [Share who say it's extremely important for the national government to fund research on anxiety/depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-who-say-its-extremely-important-for-the-national-government-to-fund-research-on-anxietydepression) - [Share who say local people would feel very comfortable speaking about anxiety or depression vs. share who know friends or family with anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/comfort-speaking-vs-knowing-friends-family-with-anxiety-depression) - [Share who say local people would feel very comfortable speaking about anxiety or depression vs. share who spoke to friends or family when they had anxiety or depression](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/perceived-comfort-speaking-anxiety-depression-vs-talked-to-family-friends-when-had-anxiety-depression) - [Stand-alone policy or plan for mental health](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/stand-alone-policy-or-plan-for-mental-health) - [Treatment gap for clinical anxiety](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-treatment-gap) - [Self-reported hopefulness](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/self-reported-hopefulness) - [Share of people who think their life will improve in the next years](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-of-people-who-think-their-life-will-improve-in-the-next-years) [Burden of disease from each category of mental illness, World, 2023](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness) Estimated number of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) per 100,000 people, broken down bycategory of mental illness. Table Line Bar Change country or region Depressive disorders 694\.6 Anxiety disorders 686\.5 Schizophrenia 210\.2 Bipolar disorder 94\.6 Eating disorders 47\.5 1990 2023 **Data source:** IHME, Global Burden of Disease (2025) – [Learn more about this data]() [OurWorldinData.org/mental-health](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health) \| [CC BY](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Related: [What do DALYs mean?](https://ourworldindata.org/burden-of-disease) Chart 1 of 51 # Featured Data on Mental Health - [Share who report lifetime anxiety or depression Respondents were asked 'Have you ever been so anxious or depressed that you could not continue your regular daily activities as you normally would for two weeks or longer?'](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-who-report-lifetime-anxiety-or-depression) [Download options](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-who-report-lifetime-anxiety-or-depression?overlay=download-data) - [Burden of disease from each category of mental illness Estimated number of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) per 100,000 people, broken down by category of mental illness.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness) [Download options](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness?overlay=download-data) - [Mental illnesses prevalence The estimated share of people with each mental illness in a given year, whether or not they were diagnosed, based on representative surveys, medical data and statistical modeling.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/mental-illnesses-prevalence) [Download options](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/mental-illnesses-prevalence?overlay=download-data) - [Share of population with mental health disorders This includes depression, anxiety, bipolar, eating disorders, and schizophrenia.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-with-mental-and-substance-disorders) [Download options](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-with-mental-and-substance-disorders?overlay=download-data) - [Share of population with drug use disorders Drug dependence is defined by the International Classification of Diseases as the presence of three or more indicators of dependence for at least a month within the previous year. Drug dependency includes all illicit drugs and excludes alcohol and tobacco.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/share-with-drug-use-disorders) - [Number of countries with underlying data on the prevalence of mental illnesses Countries with underlying data in any year since 1980 on the prevalence of each mental illness in the general population. The studies were used by the IHME’s Global Burden of Disease study to estimate the prevalence of mental illnesses worldwide.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/number-of-countries-with-primary-data-on-prevalence-of-mental-illnesses-in-the-global-burden-of-disease-study) - [Share of people living with depressive disorders Estimated share of people who have depressive disorders, whether or not they are diagnosed, based on representative surveys, medical data and statistical modelling.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/depressive-disorders-prevalence-ihme) - [Share of the population with anxiety disorders Estimated share of people with anxiety disorders, whether or not they are diagnosed, based on representative surveys, medical data and statistical modelling.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence) - [Share of the population with anxiety disorders, males vs. females Estimated share of people with anxiety disorders, whether or not they are diagnosed, based on representative surveys, medical data and statistical modelling.](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/anxiety-disorders-prevalence-males-vs-females) [See all 74 charts on this topic](https://ourworldindata.org/search?topics=Mental+Health) ### Cite this work Our articles and data visualizations rely on work from many different people and organizations. When citing this topic page, please also cite the underlying data sources. This topic page can be cited as: ``` Saloni Dattani, Lucas Rodés-Guirao, Hannah Ritchie, and Max Roser (2023) - “Mental Health” Published online at OurWorldinData.org. Retrieved from: 'https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health' [Online Resource] ``` BibTeX citation ``` @article{owid-mental-health, author = {Saloni Dattani and Lucas Rodés-Guirao and Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser}, title = {Mental Health}, journal = {Our World in Data}, year = {2023}, note = {https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health} } ```  ### Reuse this work freely All visualizations, data, and code produced by Our World in Data are completely open access under the [Creative Commons BY license](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). You have the permission to use, distribute, and reproduce these in any medium, provided the source and authors are credited. The data produced by third parties and made available by Our World in Data is subject to the license terms from the original third-party authors. We will always indicate the original source of the data in our documentation, so you should always check the license of any such third-party data before use and redistribution. All of [our charts can be embedded](https://ourworldindata.org/faqs#how-can-i-embed-one-of-your-interactive-charts-in-my-website) in any site. #### Our World in Data is free and accessible for everyone. Help us do this work by making a donation. [Donate now](https://ourworldindata.org/donate) Our World in Data is a project of [Global Change Data Lab](https://global-change-data-lab.org/), a nonprofit based in the UK (Reg. Charity No. 1186433). Our charts, articles, and data are licensed under [CC BY](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), unless stated otherwise. Tools and software we develop are open source under the [MIT license](https://github.com/owid/owid-grapher/blob/master/LICENSE.md). Third-party materials, including some charts and data, are subject to third-party licenses. See our [FAQs](https://ourworldindata.org/faqs) for more details. [](https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/global-development)[](https://www.ox.ac.uk/)[](https://global-change-data-lab.org/) [](https://www.ycombinator.com/) ##### Explore - [Topics](https://ourworldindata.org/#all-topics) - [Data](https://ourworldindata.org/search) - [Insights](https://ourworldindata.org/data-insights) ##### Resources - [Latest](https://ourworldindata.org/latest) - [SDG Tracker](https://ourworldindata.org/sdgs) - [Teaching with OWID](https://ourworldindata.org/teaching) ##### About - [About us](https://ourworldindata.org/about) - [Organization](https://ourworldindata.org/organization) - [Funding](https://ourworldindata.org/funding) - [Team](https://ourworldindata.org/team) - [Jobs](https://ourworldindata.org/jobs) - [FAQs](https://ourworldindata.org/faqs) ##### RSS Feeds - [Research & Writing](https://ourworldindata.org/atom.xml) - [Data Insights](https://ourworldindata.org/atom-data-insights.xml) ##### Follow us - [Privacy policy](https://ourworldindata.org/privacy-policy) - [Cookie notice](https://ourworldindata.org/cookie-notice) - [Legal disclaimer](https://ourworldindata.org/organization#legal-disclaimer) - [Grapher license](https://github.com/owid/owid-grapher/blob/master/LICENSE.md) - [Send feedback](https://ourworldindata.org/feedback) Subscribe Feedback ## Cookies help us build a better website We are a **non-profit** that relies on reader [donations](https://ourworldindata.org/donate). We never use ads on our website or sell user data. Reject optional cookies Accept optional cookies We use a small number of **cookies** and similar technologies to **make our website work**. Some of these are essential and can't be switched off. Other **optional cookies** help us better understand **how our website is used** — by accepting these, you can help us improve our publication for everyone. Read more in our [Privacy Policy](https://ourworldindata.org/privacy-policy) or [manage your cookie settings](https://ourworldindata.org/cookie-notice#cookie-preferences).

- [Introduction](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#introduction) - [Research & Writing](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#research-writing) - [Charts](https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health#all-charts) Mental health is an essential part of people’s lives and society. Poor mental health affects our well-being, our ability to work, and our relationships with friends, family, and community. Mental health conditions are not uncommon. Hundreds of millions suffer from them yearly, and many more do over their lifetimes. It’s estimated that [1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men](https://ourworldindata.org/depression-lifetime-risk) will experience major depression in their lives. Other conditions, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, are less common but still have a [large impact](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/burden-disease-from-each-mental-illness) on people’s lives. Mental illnesses are treatable, and the impact they have can be reduced. Despite this, treatment is often lacking or poor quality, and many feel uncomfortable sharing their symptoms with healthcare professionals or people they know. This also makes it [difficult to estimate](https://ourworldindata.org/how-do-researchers-study-the-prevalence-of-mental-illnesses) the actual prevalence of mental illnesses. To support them, it’s essential to have good data to understand these conditions – how, when, and why they occur, how many people are affected by them, and how they can be treated effectively and safely. On this page, we show data on the prevalence of mental illnesses and their burden, and people’s attitudes toward mental health. ## Research & Writing ## Featured Data on Mental Health [See all 74 charts on this topic](https://ourworldindata.org/search?topics=Mental+Health) ### Cite this work Our articles and data visualizations rely on work from many different people and organizations. When citing this topic page, please also cite the underlying data sources. This topic page can be cited as: ``` Saloni Dattani, Lucas Rodés-Guirao, Hannah Ritchie, and Max Roser (2023) - “Mental Health” Published online at OurWorldinData.org. Retrieved from: 'https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health' [Online Resource] ``` BibTeX citation ``` @article{owid-mental-health, author = {Saloni Dattani and Lucas Rodés-Guirao and Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser}, title = {Mental Health}, journal = {Our World in Data}, year = {2023}, note = {https://ourworldindata.org/mental-health} } ```  ### Reuse this work freely All visualizations, data, and code produced by Our World in Data are completely open access under the [Creative Commons BY license](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). You have the permission to use, distribute, and reproduce these in any medium, provided the source and authors are credited. The data produced by third parties and made available by Our World in Data is subject to the license terms from the original third-party authors. We will always indicate the original source of the data in our documentation, so you should always check the license of any such third-party data before use and redistribution. All of [our charts can be embedded](https://ourworldindata.org/faqs#how-can-i-embed-one-of-your-interactive-charts-in-my-website) in any site.