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WHO latest data states more than 1 billion people living with Mental Health Disorders | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
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WHO latest data states more than 1 billion people living with Mental Health Disorders

Posted 03 Sep 2025

2 min read

WHO’s two latest reports - World mental health today and Mental Health Atlas 2024 - highlight the widespread global burden of mental health conditions, affecting over a billion people and incurring substantial economic costs.

Key Highlights of the Reports

  • Growing Prevalence: In 2021, 14% of the global population were estimated to be living with a mental disorder.
  • Most Common Disorders: Anxiety and depressive disorders account for more than two-thirds of all mental health conditions.
  • Gender disparities: Females are estimated to more often experience anxiety, depressive, and eating disorders.
  • Youth vulnerability: Nearly half of mental disorders begin before the age of 18 years.
  • Critical gaps in mental health systems: Insufficient investment (median government spending - 2% of Health Budget), severe shortage of mental healthcare workers, poor treatment coverage, etc.

Consequences of Mental Disorders

  • Suicide Crisis: In 2021, Suicide was the second leading cause of death in 15–29-year-old females; and the third leading cause of death in males in this age group.
  • Informal care burden: Mental health conditions account for one of the highest annual costs of informal care, placing significant social, economic, and emotional burdens on family members and other informal carers.
  • Economic consequences: Economic burden of mental health conditions is estimated to be between 0.5% - 1.0% of GDP in several countries.

Initiatives taken to promote Mental Health

India

  • Tele Mental Health Assistance and Networking Across States (Tele- MANAS).
  • Manodarpan: To provide psychosocial support to students during COVID-19 and beyond.
  • National Mental Health Programme: To ensure availability and accessibility of minimum mental healthcare for all.

Global

  • Paro Declaration: To provide universal Access to People-centred Mental Health Care and Services.
  • Mental Health Gap Action Programme by WHO to scale up services for mental, neurological and substance use disorders.
  • Tags :
  • World mental health today
  • Mental Health Atlas 2024
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