Urban Living and Mental Health: A Comparative Study of Anxiety and Depression Prevalence

Abstract

Post the pandemic, the discussions around mental health became louder and the stigma around it began to wear off. This led to some startling revelations in terms of statistics. According to a 2019 WHO report 1 in every 8 people, or 970 million people around the world were living with a mental disorder, with anxiety and depressive disorders being the most common. COVID worsened the situation, and it is believed that we could already be living in a world where 1 in 4 people could be suffering with some form of mental illness. More and more studies have highlighted that urbanites are 21 percent more likely to have anxiety disorders and 39 percent more likely to have mood disorders as compared to their rural counterparts. This is alarming given the increasing urbanisation trend across the world. This paper examines why the urban population is more prone to mental illness and what are the likely remedial measures that can help prevent or minimise its debilitating impact.