In 2023, it was estimated that 19 percent of men in the U.S. had some type of mental illness in the past year. This statistic shows the percentage of U.S. men who had any mental illness in the past year from 2008 to 2023.
In 2024, it was estimated that nearly 32 percent of men aged 26 to 29 suffered from some mental illness, and 7.1 percent of those in this age group suffered from serious mental illness. This statistic shows the percentage of U.S. men with any or serious mental illness in the past year in 2024, by age.
In the United States, the prevalence of mental illness in the past year is more common among females than males and more common among the young than the old. As of 2024, some 26.7 percent of females reported some type of mental illness in the past year, compared to 20 percent of males. Common forms of mental illness include depression, anxiety disorders, and mood disorders. Depression Depression is one of the most common mental illnesses in the United States. Depression is defined by prolonged feelings of sadness, hopelessness, and despair leading to a loss of interest in activities once enjoyed, a loss of energy, trouble sleeping, and thoughts of death or suicide. It is estimated that around five percent of the U.S. population suffers from depression. Depression is more common among women with around six percent of women suffering from depression compared to four percent of men. Mental illness and substance abuse Data has shown that those who suffer from mental illness are more likely to suffer from substance abuse than those without mental illness. Those with mental illness are more likely to use illicit drugs such as heroin and cocaine, and to abuse prescription drugs than those without mental illness. As of 2023, around 7.9 percent of adults in the United States suffered from co-occuring mental illness and substance use disorder.
In 2024, around 17 percent of men in the United States received mental health treatment or counseling in the past year. The share of men who have received treatment for mental health problems has increased over the past couple decades likely due to a decrease in stigma around seeking such help and increased awareness of mental health issues. However, women in the U.S. are still much more likely to receive mental health treatment than men. Mental illness among men No one is immune to mental illness and the impact of mental health problems can be severe and debilitating. In 2023, it was estimated that 19 percent of men in the United States had some form of mental illness in the past year. Two of the most common mental disorders among men and women alike are anxiety disorders and depression. Depression is more common among men in their late teens and early 20s, with around 15 percent of U.S. men aged 21 to 25 years reporting experiencing a major depressive episode in the past year as of 2022. Depression is a very treatable condition, but those suffering from depression are at a much higher risk of suicide than those who do not have depression. Suicide among men Although women in the United States are more likely to report suffering from mental illness than men, the suicide rate among U.S. men is around 3.7 times higher than that of women. Suicide deaths among men are much more likely to involve the use of firearms, which may explain some of the disparity in suicide deaths between men and women. In 2020, around 58 percent of suicide deaths among men were from firearms compared to just 33 percent of suicide deaths among women. Although more people in the United States are accessing mental health, barriers to treatment persist. In 2022, the thought that they could handle the problem without treatment was the number one reason U.S. adults gave for not receiving the mental health treatment they required.
Percentage of persons aged 15 years and over by perceived mental health, by gender, for Canada, regions and provinces.
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The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected elite athletes, leading to increased mental health issues such as stress, anxiety, and depression. Sex differences in mental health may exist among athletes during the COVID-19 crisis. This study aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine sex differences in mental health symptoms among elite athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic. We systematically searched the databases including Pubmed, EMBASE, and manually checked previous systematic reviews for relevant studies in March 2024. Authors were also contacted for sex-specific data. Studies were included if they compared mental health symptoms between male and female elite athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic. We used a random-effects model to summarize the rate ratio (RR) between female and male athletes across studies. Risk of bias in studies was assessed using a 9-item tool. We included 18 studies in this review. The results indicated that female athletes reported higher levels of anxiety (RR 1.24, 95% CI = 1.08 to 1.43) and depression (RR 1.36, 95% CI = 1.15 to 1.61) than male athletes during the pandemic. They also had a higher risk of stress or distress (RR 1.27, 95% CI = 0.99 to 1.63) than their male counterparts. No significant differences were found regarding alcohol use or misuse between female and male athletes (RR 1.01, 95% CI = 0.75 to 1.37). Limited evidence was available for eating disorders, gambling, substance use, and sleep problems. In conclusion, female and male athletes differed in mental health symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic. Female athletes were more likely to report anxiety, depression, and distress. Incorporating mental health resources may be particularly important for women’s sports, which have smaller financial margins and greater career uncertainty than men’s sports.
The state of mental health among Poles was assessed better by men than by women. Fifty-one percent of women compared to ** percent of men assessed their mental health condition as very good and good in 2024.
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IntroductionSuicide prevention is an important aspect of psychiatric care, with older men being a population identified at especially high suicide risk and a recent increase in suicides among older women.MethodsUsing data collected by the region’s quality assurance team, we examined all suicide deaths occurring between March 1999 and February 2024 in patients aged 60 years or older who were connected to the region’s Addiction and Mental Health Program at the time of death. Data were analyzed to describe which factors were most commonly identified in suicides in older adults receiving mental healthcare. We also compared male and female cases to determine whether certain factors were more commonly observed in one gender.ResultsWe identified 48 cases of suicide occurring in patients aged 60 or over. 60% of suicides occurred in males. Overdose and hanging were the most common suicide methods used, and all suicides occurring on inpatient units occurred via hanging. Depression was the most common diagnosis, and was diagnosed more frequently in suicides of female older adults. A greater proportion of suicides in older women were associated with previous history of suicide attempts.DiscussionOur findings support many current best practices for suicide prevention in psychiatric care, including minimizing ligatures and anchor points on inpatient settings, assessing for and limiting access to means in individuals at-risk, and assessing suicide risk in hospitalized patients prior to passes and discharge. Recognition and treatment of depression remain important aspects in the treatment of older adults to prevent suicide.
A 2024 survey conducted in the United States and the United Kingdom found that ** percent of male social media users had concerns about the impact of social media on young men’s health. Around ***** percent of those surveys disagreed with the idea that social media was effecting young men's health.
Download data on suicides in Massachusetts by demographics and year. This page also includes reporting on military & veteran suicide, and suicides during COVID-19.
A survey of men from 31 different countries around the world found that mental health was the biggest health problem respondents from all generations except boomers said was facing their country in 2024. Approximately 44 percent of male boomers surveyed felt cancer was the biggest health problem facing their country, as opposed to only 28 percent of male Gen Z respondents.
In 2024, it was estimated that 20 percent of men in the U.S. had some type of mental illness in the past year. This statistic shows the percentage of U.S. men who had any mental illness in the past year from 2008 to 2024.
The 2023-24 Lesotho Demographic and Health Survey (2023-24 LDHS) is designed to provide data for monitoring the population and health situation in Lesotho. The 2023-24 LDHS is the 4th Demographic and Health Survey conducted in Lesotho since 2004.
The primary objective of the 2023–24 LDHS is to provide up-to-date estimates of basic demographic and health indicators. Specifically, the LDHS collected information on fertility levels, marriage, sexual activity, fertility preferences, awareness and use of family planning methods, breastfeeding practices, nutrition, childhood and maternal mortality, maternal and child health, awareness and behaviour regarding HIV and AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs), other health issues (including tuberculosis) and chronic diseases, adult mortality (including maternal mortality), mental health and well-being, and gender-based violence. In addition, the 2023–24 LDHS provides estimates of anaemia prevalence among children age 6–59 months and adults as well as estimates of hypertension and diabetes among adults.
The information collected through the 2023–24 LDHS is intended to assist policymakers and programme managers in designing and evaluating programmes and strategies for improving the health of Lesotho’s population. The survey also provides indicators relevant to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for Lesotho.
National coverage
The survey covered all de jure household members (usual residents), all women aged 15-49, all men aged 15-59, and all children aged 0-4 resident in the household.
Sample survey data [ssd]
The sampling frame used for the 2023–24 LDHS is based on the 2016 Population and Housing Census (2016 PHC), provided by the Lesotho Bureau of Statistics (BoS). The frame file is a complete list of all census enumeration areas (EAs) within Lesotho. An EA is a geographic area, usually a city block in an urban area or a village in a rural area, consisting of approximately 100 households. In rural areas, it may consist of one or more villages. Each EA serves as a counting unit for the population census and has a satellite map delineating its boundaries, with identification information and a measure of size, which is the number of residential households enumerated in the 2016 PHC. Lesotho is administratively divided into 10 districts; each district is subdivided into constituencies and each constituency into community councils.
The 2023–24 LDHS sample of households was stratified and selected independently in two stages. Each district was stratified into urban, peri-urban, and rural areas; this yielded 29 sampling strata because there are no peri-urban areas in Butha-Buthe. In the first sampling stage, 400 EAs were selected with probability proportional to EA size and with independent selection in each sampling stratum. A household listing operation was carried out in all of the selected sample EAs, and the resulting lists of households served as the sampling frame for the selection of households in the next stage.
In the second stage of selection, a fixed number of 25 households per cluster (EA) were selected with an equal probability systematic selection from the newly created household listing. All women age 15–49 who were usual members of the selected households or who spent the night before the survey in the selected households were eligible for the Woman’s Questionnaire. In every other household, all men age 15–59 who were usual members of the selected households or who spent the night before the survey in the selected households were eligible for the Man’s Questionnaire. All households in the men’s subsample were eligible for the Biomarker Questionnaire.
Fifteen listing teams, each consisting of three listers/mappers and a supervisor, were deployed in the field to complete the listing operation. Training of the household listers/mappers took place from 28 to 30 June 2024. The household listing operation was carried out in all of the selected EAs from 5 to 26 July 2024. For each household, Global Positioning System (GPS) data were collected at the time of listing and during interviews.
Computer Assisted Personal Interview [capi]
Four questionnaires were used for the 2023–24 LDHS: the Household Questionnaire, the Woman’s Questionnaire, the Man’s Questionnaire, and the Biomarker Questionnaire. The questionnaires, based on The DHS Program’s model questionnaires, were adapted to reflect the population and health issues relevant to Lesotho and were translated into Sesotho. In addition, a self-administered Fieldworker Questionnaire collected information about the survey’s fieldworkers.
The survey data were collected using tablet computers running the Android operating system and Census and Survey Processing System (CSPro) software, jointly developed by the United States Census Bureau, ICF, and Serpro S.A. English and Sesotho questionnaires were used for collecting data via CAPI. The CAPI programmes accepted only valid responses, automatically performed checks on ranges of values, skipped to the appropriate question based on the responses given, and checked the consistency of the data collected. Answers to the survey questions were entered into the tablets by each interviewer. Supervisors downloaded interview data to their tablet, checked the data for completeness, and monitored fieldwork progress.
Each day, after completion of interviews, field supervisors submitted data to the central server. Data were sent to the central office via secure internet data transfer. The data processing managers monitored the quality of the data received and downloaded completed data files for completed clusters into the system. ICF provided the CSPro software for data processing and technical assistance in the preparation of the data capture, data management, and data editing programmes. Secondary editing was conducted simultaneously with data collection. All technical support for data processing and use of the tablets was provided by ICF.
This statistic depicts the percentage of the global population with select mental health and substance use disorders as of 2017, by gender. According to the data, a total of **** percent of males and **** percent of females suffered from mental health or substance use disorders globally.
According to a survey conducted in March 2024 among adults from the United States, more women than men reported that they had taken an extended break from social media due to negative effects on mental health, accounting for 37 percent of female respondents, compared to 33 percent of male respondents. An equal share of men and women reported never taking a break from online networks for this reason, with 51 percent of respondents of each gender.
As of 2024, some 7.9 percent of female respondents and 8.3 percent of male respondents in the United States reported to have suffered from a co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorder in the past year. This statistic depicts the percentage of adults in the United States with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorder as of 2023, sorted by age and gender.
As of August 2024, more than half of Gen Z women and ** percent of Gen Z men surveyed worldwide believed that mental health was the biggest health problem in their country. The gender gap was quite pronounced across all generations, but was the largest among the Gen Z population.
In 2024, approximately ** percent of 18 to 20-year-old men experienced a major depressive episode in the past year. This statistic depicts the percentage of U.S. men with a major depressive episode in the past year in 2024, by age.
In 2024, some 8.2 percent of adults in the United States reported experiencing a major depressive episode in the past year. However, among those aged 18 to 25 years, some 15.9 percent reported a major depressive episode. Depression is one of the most common mental health disorders in the United States and in severe cases can seriously affect one’s ability to function. Depression among men and women Although depression can affect anyone, women are more likely to report experiencing a major depressive episode than men. In 2021, around 10 percent of women in the United States stated they had a major depressive episode in the past year, compared to six percent of men. Women aged 18 to 20 were the most likely to suffer from a major depressive episode with up to 21 percent reporting such an episode in 2023. In comparison, just 12 percent of men aged 18 to 20 said they had a major depressive episode at that time. Among men, those aged 21 to 25 had the highest prevalence of major depression. Treatment for depression Fortunately, depression is treatable, and the vast majority of people who receive treatment benefit from it. Depression is most commonly treated with medication, talk therapy, or a combination of both. In 2022, around 12.8 million people in the United States received treatment for a major depressive episode. The most common type of professionals seen for such treatment were general practitioners or family doctors and psychiatrists or psychotherapists. Among U.S. youths who are treated for a major depressive disorder, very few are treated using only prescription medication. Instead, it is much more common for youth to see or talk to a health professional only, or to see a health professional and use prescription medication.
As of October 2021, women had the highest share of mental health disorders in India, amounting to ** percent and ** percent for stress and anxiety health disorder respectively. Comparatively, ** percent of men had depression as compared to women with ** percent during the same time period.
In 2023, it was estimated that 19 percent of men in the U.S. had some type of mental illness in the past year. This statistic shows the percentage of U.S. men who had any mental illness in the past year from 2008 to 2023.