44 Surprising Depression Statistics

Depression can affect anyone. It doesn’t matter your race, culture, ethnicity, or socioeconomic status. Depression and anxiety can occur at any age. It also tends to co-occur with another illness or a medical condition. They symptoms are often ignored or occur without recognition, leading to nearly one-third of those suffering from depression being under-treated for their mental health needs.

Depression and anxiety disordered are highly treatable. Half of those who are diagnosed with depression are also diagnosed with an anxiety disorder at the same time. By understanding these depression statistics and learning to recognize the symptoms in oneself or when seen in others, this can be a mental health issue that doesn’t need to affect as many people in the future.

Statistics About Depression

1. People who have depression or an anxiety disorder are up to 5 times more likely to go to the doctor and up to 6 times more likely to be hospitalized for a psychiatric disorder compared to the general population. (ADAA)

2. Depression and anxiety disorders cost the US more than $42 billion every year to treat, accounting for nearly one-third of the total cost of mental health treatments. (APAA)

3. More than half of the costs that are associated with the treatment of depression and anxiety are associated with the repeated use of health care services. (APAA)

4. The leading cause of disability in the United States for people between the ages of 15-44 is Major Depressive Disorder. (APAA)

5. Major Depressive Disorder affects more than 15 million Americans every year. At any given time, about 7% of the US population above the age of 18 is dealing with the symptoms of this disorder. (APAA)

6. The median age of onset of a Persistent Depressive Disorder is 31.1 in the United States. (APAA)

7. About 1.5% of the US population above the age of 18 is dealing with PDD right now, or about 3.3 million American adults. PDD can only be diagnosed with the symptoms of depression have been present for two years or more. (APAA)

8. Major depressive orders are more prevalent in women than they are in men. Although major depressive disorders can begin at any age, including in children, the median age onset is 32.5 years in the United States. (APAA)

9. Depression and anxiety disorders affect 1 in 8 children in the United States. Children with this mental health issue are at a higher risk of performing poorly in school, having negative social experiences, and engaging in substance abuse. (APAA)

10. 80% of those who are affected by depression in some way do not receive treatment for their condition at any time. (Healthline)

11. Up to 10% of Americans will experience depression at some point in their lives. The number of patients who are diagnosed with depression increased by approximately 20% every year. (Healthline)

12. Certain illnesses diseases will commonly be associated with depression. Cancer patients are also diagnosed with depression up to 25% of the time. (APAA)

13. There is a direct correlation between the appearance of depression and having higher rates of obesity, heart disease, stroke, sleep disorders, and a lack of education. In areas with high depression rates, there is also less overall access to medical insurance. (Healthline)

14. Being recently divorced and unemployed are risk factors that make it more likely for an individual to be suffering from depression. (Healthline)

15. Although depression occurs in every age group, people who are between the ages of 45-64 are the most likely to be suffering from depression at this very moment. (Healthline)

16. Both African-Americans/Blacks and Hispanics (4%) are more likely than Whites/Caucasians (3.1%) to be struggling with depression or depression-like symptoms at any given moment. (Healthline)

17. Women are twice as likely to have depression and the symptoms of depression compared to men of the same age. (Healthline)

18. 10% of women will experience the symptoms of depression, called postpartum depression in the weeks after having a baby. (Healthline)

19. Up to 80% of all the cases of depression can be effectively treated by using a brief and structured form of psychotherapy, along with certain antidepressant medications. (Healthline)

20. An estimated 121 million people from around the world suffer from some form of depression right now. Over the course of an average 12-month period, more than 350 million people will have suffered from at least one episode of depression or depression-like symptoms. (Healthline/WHO)

21. Although the United States is one of the leading nations with a population that is suffering from Depression, both the Netherlands and France also see depression diagnoses that are comparable to the US. (Healthline)

22. More cases of depression and anxiety are diagnosed per capita in India than anywhere else in the world today. The depression rate of India is 36%. (Healthline)

23. An estimated 16 million Americans had at least one major depressive episode over the last year. (NIH)

24. 11% of children will have experienced the symptoms of a depressive disorder by the time they reach the age of 18. (NIH)

25. Women are 70% more likely, when compared to men, to experience at least one episode of depression within their lifetime. (Huffington Post)

26. 30% of college students report feeling depressed, which disrupts their ability to be able to function properly in school. (Huffington Post)

27. The number of ambulatory care visits that involved a major depressive disorder as the primary diagnosis topped 8 million instances in 2010. (CDC)

28. 50% of Americans who have a major depressive disorder will not seek out any form of treatment for the symptoms they are experiencing. (Huffington Post)

29. Up to 10% of Americans who are 65 years of age or older have a diagnosable depressive disorder. (Huffington Post)

30. The average length of a psychotherapy treatment plan when dealing with a depressive disorder is between 10-20 weeks. It takes about 4-6 weeks for antidepressant medication to reach therapeutic levels. (Huffington Post)

31. As many as 2% of young children in the United States may have serious depression symptoms. Up to 7.6% of children 12 years of age or older will have depression in any given 2-week period. (ADAA/CDC)

32. Up to 800,000 people die to suicide every year and it is the second leading cause of death in individuals who are 15-29 years of age. Depression, when at its worst, is known to lead to suicide. (WHO)

33. In any given year, more than 1 out of 20 Americans above the age of 12 have reported current depression. (CDC)

34. Up to 27% of post-stroke patients experience depression at some point during the recovery process. (NIMH)

35. Up to 33% of heart attack survivors will also experience depression at some point during their recovery. (NIMH)

36. About 1 in 5 US families are currently caring for an older relative. A survey of those in a caregiving role show that 58% had the presence of clinically significant depressive symptoms. (Family Caregiver Alliance)

37. Depression may increase the chances for a woman to experience broken bones. Women with a history of major depression have up to 15% lower bone densities than women in the general population and of the same age. This can increase the risks of a hip fracture by up to 40%. (DBS Alliance)

38. Up to 80% of people who are treated for depression will show an improvement in their symptoms within 4-6 weeks of beginning a treatment plan. (NIH)

39. Up to 50% of the cases of depression that are not treated successfully are believed to be due to medical non-compliance. This is because some patients experience what they feel are unacceptable side effects or may not be able to financially afford the full treatment series for their medication. (DBS Alliance)

40. Participation in support groups when being treated for depression can increase treatment compliance by more than 85%. Support group participants are also more than 85% more willing to take their medication and cope with any side effects they may experience, which reduces in-patient hospitalizations. (DBS Alliance)

41. Untreated depression is the #1 risk for suicide among youth and especially for teen boys. The ratio of suicide is 7:1 for teen boys with untreated depression compared to teen girls. (AAS)

42. Up to 75% of those who are being treated for an eating disorder, such as anorexia or bulimia, will also experience depression-like symptoms which require treatment. (NIMH)

43. People with depression are 4 times more likely to develop a heart attack. (NIMH)

44. Half of those who are diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease may experience depression. (NIMH)

Mental health issues often have a negative stigma associated with them, especially within certain religious communities. We must begin to see depression as an illness instead of a personal problem. With fast and effective treatment, the recovery rates from depression are impressively high, but a majority of those with depression will not seek out treatment for one reason or another.

The depression statistics prove that there is hope to be found. Together we can make a difference.