Mental health statistics



Here is a list of up to date statistics about a range of mental health topics. This list will be updated as key reports are released throughout the year.

On this page you can also download the statistics pack to go with your MHFA England course manual.

 

Statistics by topic

Click to jump to topic area:

Perceptions of mental ill health
The impact of mental ill health
The impact of mental ill health in young people
Disability rankings
Mental ill health in the workplace
Mental ill health in LGBT+ and BAME communities
Mental ill health in the UK armed forces
Mental ill health in higher education students
Depression
Anxiety
Suicide
Self-harm
Eating disorders
Psychosis and schizophrenia
Bipolar disorder
Personality disorders
Alcohol, drugs and mental health
Cyberbullying

Statistics packs for MHFA England courses

 

Perceptions of mental ill health

  • Over a third of the public think people with a mental health issue are likely to be violent (1)

  • People with severe mental illness are more likely to be the victims, rather than the perpetrators, of violent crime (2–4)

  • People with mental ill health are more dangerous to themselves than to others: 80-90% of people who die by suicide are experiencing mental distress (5,6) 

  • Poor mental health impacts on individuals and their families, in lost income, lower educational attainment, quality of life and a much shorter life span (7,8)

 

  1. Time to Change. Attitudes to Mental Illness 2014 Research Report [Internet]. 2015. Available from: time-to-change.org.uk

  2. Khalifeh H, Johnson S, Howard LM, Borschmann R, Osborn D, Dean K, et al. Violent and non-violent crime against adults with severe mental illness. Br J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2015 Apr 1 [cited 2016 Dec 2];206(4):275–82. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  3. Latalova K, Kamaradova D, Prasko J. Violent victimization of adult patients with severe mental illness: a systematic review. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat [Internet]. 2014 [cited 2018 Jun 26];10:1925–39. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  4. de Vries B, van Busschbach JT, van der Stouwe ECD, Aleman A, van Dijk JJM, Lysaker PH, et al. Prevalence rate and risk factors of victimization in adult patients with a psychotic disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Schizophr Bull [Internet]. 2018 Mar 14 [cited 2018 Jun 26]; Available from: academic.oup.com

  5. Cavanagh JTO, Carson AJ, Sharpe M, Lawrie SM. Psychological autopsy studies of suicide: a systematic review. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2003 Apr [cited 2016 Dec 1];33(3):395–405. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  6. Cho S-E, Na K-S, Cho S-J, Im J-S, Kang S-G. Geographical and temporal variations in the prevalence of mental disorders in suicide: Systematic review and meta-analysis. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2016 Jan 15 [cited 2018 May 9];190:704–13. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  7. World Health Organization. Investing in mental health: evidence for action [Internet]. 2013. Available from: apps.who.int

  8. Kang H-J, Kim S-Y, Bae K-Y, Kim S-W, Shin I-S, Yoon J-S, et al. Comorbidity of depression with physical disorders: research and clinical implications. Chonnam Med J [Internet]. 2015 Apr [cited 2016 Dec 1];51(1):8–18. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The impact of mental ill health

  • 1 in 4 people experience mental health issues each year (1)

  • 676 million people are affected by mental health issues worldwide (2)

  • At any given time, 1 in 6 working-age adults have symptoms associated with mental ill health (3)

  • Mental illness is the largest single source of burden of disease in the UK. Mental illnesses are more common, long-lasting and impactful than other health conditions (4)

  • Mental ill health is responsible for 72 million working days lost and costs £34.9 billion each year (5)
    Note: Different studies will estimate the cost of mental ill health in different ways. Other reputable research estimates this cost to be as high as £74–£99 billion (6)

  • The total cost of mental ill health in England is estimated at £105 billion per year (1)

  • People with a long-term mental health condition lose their jobs every year at around double the rate of those without a mental health condition. This equates to 300,000 people – the equivalent of the population of Newcastle or Belfast (6)

  • 75% of mental illness (excluding dementia) starts before age 18 (4)
    Note: Dementia is more accurately described as a progressive neurological disorder (a condition affecting the brain’s structure and subsequent function over time), and typically does not occur before the age of 30

  • Men aged 40-49 have the highest suicide rates in Great Britain (7)

  • 70-75% of people with diagnosable mental illness receive no treatment at all (4,8,9)

 

  1. Mental Health Taskforce NE. The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health. 2016 [cited 2017 May 23]; Available from: england.nhs.uk

  2. World Health Organization. Health in 2015: from MDGs, Millennium Development Goals to SDGs, Sustainable Development Goals [Internet]. 2015. Available from: apps.who.int

  3. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  4. Davies SC. Annual Report of the Chief Medical Officer 2013, Public Mental Health Priorities: Investing in the Evidence [Internet]. 2014. Available from: gov.uk

  5. Centre for Mental Health. Mental health at work: The business costs ten years on [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Oct 16]. Available from: centreformentalhealth.org.uk

  6. Stevenson D, Farmer P. Thriving at work: The Independent Review of Mental Health and Employers [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Nov 22]. Available from: gov.uk

  7. Office for National Statistics. Suicides in Great Britain: 2016 registrations [Internet]. 2017. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  8. Alonso J, Liu Z, Evans-Lacko S, Sadikova E, Sampson N, Chatterji S, et al. Treatment gap for anxiety disorders is global: Results of the World Mental Health Surveys in 21 countries. Depress Anxiety [Internet]. 2018 Mar [cited 2018 Jun 26];35(3):195–208. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  9. Evans-Lacko S, Aguilar-Gaxiola S, Al-Hamzawi A, Alonso J, Benjet C, Bruffaerts R, et al. Socio-economic variations in the mental health treatment gap for people with anxiety, mood, and substance use disorders: results from the WHO World Mental Health (WMH) surveys. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2018 Jun 26];1–12. Available from: kclpure.kcl.ac.uk
     

The impact of mental ill health in young people

  • Mental ill health is the largest cause of burden of disease in the UK (1)  

  • The economic costs of mental health issues in England have been estimated at £105 billion each year (2) 

  • In an average classroom, ten children will have witnessed their parents separate, eight will have experienced severe physical violence, sexual abuse or neglect, one will have experienced the death of a parent and seven will have been bullied (3) 

  • Half of mental ill health starts by age 15 and 75% develops by age 18 (4,5) 

  • 12.8% of young people aged 5-19 meet clinical criteria for a mental health disorder (6) 

  • Women between the ages of 16 and 24 are almost three times as likely (26%) to experience a common mental health issue as males of the same age (9%) (7) 

  • The proportion of young people aged 15-16 who reported feeling depressed or anxious doubled between the mid-1980s and the mid-2000s (8) 

  • About 20% of young people with mental ill health wait more than six months to receive care from a specialist (9) 

  • In a 2015 OECD survey of 15-year-olds, the UK ranked 23rd for life satisfaction, out of a total of 28 OECD countries (10) 

  • About 10% of young people aged 8-15 experience a low sense of wellbeing (11) 
    Note: This report also states that older age groups have poorer wellbeing than younger age groups

  • Only one in eight children who have been sexually abused come to the attention of statutory agencies (12) 

  • Up to 25% of teenagers have experienced physical violence in their intimate partner relationships (13-16) 

 

  1. Royal College of Psychiatrists. No health without public mental health: the case for action. Position Statement PS4/2010 [Internet]. 2010. Available from: rcpsych.ac.uk 

  2. Mental Health Taskforce NE. The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health. 2016 [cited 2017 May 23]; Available from: england.nhs.uk

  3. Faulkner J. Class of 2011 Yearbook: How happy are young people and why does it matter? [Internet]. Doncaster; 2011 [cited 2017 May 31]. Available from: relate.org.uk

  4. Department of Health, Department for Children S and F. Healthy lives, brighter futures [Internet]. 2009 [cited 2017 May 16]. Available from: webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk

  5. Davies SC. Annual Report of the Chief Medical Officer 2013, Public Mental Health Priorities: Investing in the Evidence [Internet]. 2014. Available from: gov.uk 

  6. Sadler K, Vizard T, Ford T, Goodman A, Goodman R, Mcmanus S. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Trends and characteristics [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk 

  7. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  8. Collishaw S, Maughan B, Natarajan L, Pickles A. Trends in adolescent emotional problems in England: a comparison of two national cohorts twenty years apart. J Child Psychol Psychiatry [Internet]. 2010 Mar 10 [cited 2019 Feb 14];51(8):885–94. Available from: doi.wiley.com 

  9. Mandalia D, Ford T, Hill S, Sadler K, Vizard T, Goodman A, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Professional services, informal support, and education [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk 

  10. OECD. PISA 2015 Results Students’ Well-being Volume III [Internet]. 2017. Available from: oecd.org 

  11. Rees G, Goswami H, Pople L, Bradshaw J, Keung A, Main G. The Good Childhood Report 2013 [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2019 Feb 14]. Available from: childrenssociety.org.uk

  12. Children’s Commissioner for England. Protecting children from harm: A critical assessment of child sexual abuse in the family network in England and priorities for action [Internet]. London; 2015 [cited 2019 Feb 14]. Available from: childrenscommissioner.gov.uk 

  13. Barter C, McCarry M, Berridge D, Evans K. Partner exploitation and violence in teenage intimate relationships. 2009. Available from: nspcc.org.uk 

  14. Leen E, Sorbring E, Mawer M, Holdsworth E, Helsing B, Bowen E. Prevalence, dynamic risk factors and the efficacy of primary interventions for adolescent dating violence: An international review. Aggress Violent Behav [Internet]. 2013 Jan 1 [cited 2019 Feb 15];18(1):159–74. Available from: sciencedirect.com 

  15. Young H, Turney C, White J, Bonell C, Lewis R, Fletcher A. Dating and relationship violence among 16–19 year olds in England and Wales: a cross-sectional study of victimization. J Public Health (Bangkok) [Internet]. 2018 Dec 1 [cited 2019 Feb 15];40(4):738–46. Available from: academic.oup.com

  16. Barter C, Stanley N, Wood M, Lanau A, Aghtaie N, Larkins C, et al. Young people’s online and face-to-face experiences of interpersonal violence and abuse and their subjective impact across five European countries. Psychol Violence [Internet]. 2017 Jul [cited 2019 Feb 15];7(3):375–84. Available from: doi.apa.org

Disability rankings

These figures draw from a study by Salomon JA et al.: Disability weights for the Global Burden of Disease 2013.

In this research, the authors asked 60,890 participants from around the world which diseases, injuries and disorders they considered to be the most disabling. They then analysed the data to create a ‘disability weight’ for each condition. A disability weight is a number ranging from 0.0 to 1.0 which represents the severity of a disease, with larger numbers representing increasing severity/disability. The paper ranks 185 physical and mental health conditions from least to most disabling, including:

  • HIV/AIDS in treatment = 0.08
  • Mild depression = 0.15
  • Moderate epilepsy = 0.26
  • Moderate dementia = 0.38
  • Moderate depression = 0.40
  • Severe motor impairment = 0.40
  • Severe anxiety = 0.52
  • Severe stroke with long-term consequences = 0.55
  • Severe depression = 0.66
  • Untreated spinal cord lesion/injury = 0.73
  • Schizophrenia (acute) = 0.78
     

These types of studies help to determine how illness affects wellbeing and quality of life, particularly for conditions which are chronic and non-fatal. 

This study is part of a wider programme of research by the World Health Organization (2). You can find the most up to date version at who.int.

 

  1. Salomon JA, Haagsma JA, Davis A, de Noordhout CM, Polinder S, Havelaar AH, et al. Disability weights for the Global Burden of Disease 2013 study. Lancet Glob Heal [Internet]. 2015 Nov [cited 2016 Dec 2];3(11):e712–23. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. World Health Organization. WHO methods and data sources for global burden of disease estimates, 2000–2011 [Internet]. 2013. Available from: who.int

Mental ill health in the workplace

  • 1 in 6 workers will experience depression, anxiety or problems relating to stress at any one time (1)

  • There were 526,000 cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2016/17 in Great Britain (2)

  • In 2016/17, stress was responsible for 40% of all cases of work-related ill health and for 49% of all working days lost due to health issues in GB (2)

  • 1 in 5 people take a day off due to stress. Yet, 90% of these people cited a different reason for their absence (3)

  • Presenteeism accounts for 2 times more losses than absences (4)

  • Every year it costs business £1,300 per employee whose mental health needs are unsupported (4)

  • Mental ill health is responsible for 72 million working days lost and costs £34.9 billion each year (4)
    Note: Different studies will estimate the cost of mental ill health in different ways. Other reputable research estimates this cost to be as high as £74–£99 billion (5)

  • People with a long-term mental health condition lose their jobs every year at around double the rate of those without a mental health condition. This equates to 300,000 people – the equivalent of the population of Newcastle or Belfast (5)

  • 15% of employees who disclosed mental health issues to their line manager reported being disciplined, dismissed or demoted (6)

  • 84% of UK line managers believe they are responsible for employee wellbeing, but only 24% have received training. 49% of line managers reported a wish for basic training in common mental health conditions (6)

 

  1. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  2. Health and Safety Executive. Work-related Stress, Depression or Anxiety Statistics in Great Britain 2017 [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2018 May 8]. Available from: hse.gov.uk

  3. Mind. Work is biggest cause of stress in people’s lives [Internet]. 2013. Available from: mind.org.uk

  4. Centre for Mental Health. Mental health at work: The business costs ten years on [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Oct 16]. Available from: centreformentalhealth.org.uk

  5. Stevenson D, Farmer P. Thriving at work: The Independent Review of Mental Health and Employers [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Nov 22]. Available from: gov.uk

  6. Business in the Community. Mental Health at Work Report 2017 [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Oct 16]. Available from: wellbeing.bitc.org.uk

Mental ill health in LGBT+ and BAME communities 

  • People who identify as LGBT+ are more likely to have suicidal thoughts, and attempt suicide, than those who do not identify as LGBT+ (1–3) 

  • People who identify as LGBT+ are at increased risk of developing anxiety disorders (4,5) 

  • Self-harm is more common in ex-service personnel, young people, women, LGBT+ community, prisoners, asylum seekers, and people who have experienced physical, emotional or sexual abuse (6) 

  • Up to 16% of people who identify as LGBT+ experience symptoms of an eating disorder (7,8) 

  • Psychosis is more common among BAME groups (9–12) 

  • Mental health issues are more likely to affect young people who identify as LGBT+ than those who do not (8,13–15) 

  • Young people who identify as LGBT+ are more likely to report self-harming than young people who do not identify as LGBT+ (14,16) 

  • Young people from BAME and migrant backgrounds are more likely to show developmental difficulties associated with psychosis and develop psychotic disorders later in life (10,17) 

  • Symptoms of depression are more common and severe in young people who identify as LGBT+ than in those who do not (14,16) 

  • Adolescents who identify as LGBT+ are at increased risk of anxiety disorders (18,19) 

  • 11% - 32% of young people who identify as LGBT+ have attempted suicide in their lifetime (8,16,20) 

  • Young people who identify as LGBT+ are more likely to show symptoms of eating disorders than those who do not identify as LGBT+ (8,15) 

  • People who identify as LGBT+ are at increased risk of both mental ill health and substance misuse (1,2,7) 

  • Ex-service personnel who identify as LGBT+ are more likely to have suicidal thoughts, and attempt suicide, than those who do not identify as LGBT+ (21) 

 

  1. Chakraborty A, McManus S, Brugha TS, Bebbington P, King M. Mental health of the non-heterosexual population of England. Br J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2011 Feb 2 [cited 2019 Jun 12];198(2):143–8. Available from: cambridge.org

  2. King M, Semlyen J, Tai SS, Killaspy H, Osborn D, Popelyuk D, et al. A systematic review of mental disorder, suicide, and deliberate self harm in lesbian, gay and bisexual people. BMC Psychiatry [Internet]. 2008 Dec 18 [cited 2016 Dec 1];8(1):70. Available from: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com 

  3. Bailey L, J. Ellis S, McNeil J. Suicide risk in the UK trans population and the role of gender transition in decreasing suicidal ideation and suicide attempt. Ment Heal Rev J [Internet]. 2014 Dec 2 [cited 2019 Jun 13];19(4):209–20. Available from: emeraldinsight.com

  4. Plöderl M, Tremblay P. Mental health of sexual minorities. A systematic review. Int Rev Psychiatry [Internet]. 2015 Sep 3 [cited 2019 Jun 13];27(5):367–85. Available from: tandfonline.com 

  5. Bouman WP, Claes L, Brewin N, Crawford JR, Millet N, Fernandez-Aranda F, et al. Transgender and anxiety: A comparative study between transgender people and the general population. Int J Transgenderism [Internet]. 2017 Jan 2 [cited 2019 Jun 13];18(1):16–26. Available from: tandfonline.com

  6. Royal College of Psychiatrists. Self-harm, suicide and risk: helping people who self-harm [Internet]. 2010. Available from: rcpsych.ac.uk

  7. Bachmann CL, Gooch B. LGBT in Britain: Health report [Internet]. London; 2018 [cited 2019 May 22]. Available from: stonewall.org.uk

  8. Connolly MD, Zervos MJ, Barone CJ, Johnson CC, Joseph CLM. The mental health of transgender youth: Advances in understanding. J Adolesc Heal [Internet]. 2016 Nov 1 [cited 2019 Jun 11];59(5):489–95. Available from: sciencedirect.com

  9. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  10. Kirkbride JB, Hameed Y, Ioannidis K, Ankireddypalli G, Crane CM, Nasir M, et al. Ethnic minority status, age-at-immigration and psychosis risk in rural environments: Evidence from the SEPEA study. Schizophr Bull [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2019 Jun 7];43(6):1251–61. Available from: academic.oup.com

  11. Kirkbride J, Errazuriz A, Croudace T, Morgan C, Jackson D, McCrone P, et al. Systematic Review of the Incidence and Prevalence of Schizophrenia and Other Psychoses in England. [Internet]. 2012. Available from: psychiatry.cam.ac.uk

  12. Kirkbride JB, Errazuriz A, Croudace TJ, Morgan C, Jackson D, Boydell J, et al. Incidence of schizophrenia and other psychoses in England, 1950-2009: a systematic review and meta-analyses. PLoS One [Internet]. 2012 [cited 2016 Dec 1];7(3):e31660. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  13. Marcheselli F, Brodie E, Yeoh SN, Pearce N, McManus S, Sadler K, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Behaviours, lifestyles and identities [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk

  14. Butler C, Joiner R, Bradley R, Bowles M, Bowes A, Russell C, et al. Self-harm prevalence and ideation in a community sample of cis, trans and other youth. Int J Transgenderism [Internet]. 2019 [cited 2019 Jun 10]; Available from: tandfonline.com

  15. Calzo JP, Austin SB, Micali N. Sexual orientation disparities in eating disorder symptoms among adolescent boys and girls in the UK. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry [Internet]. 2018 Nov 17 [cited 2019 Jun 11];27(11):1483–90. Available from: link.springer.com 

  16. Irish M, Solmi F, Mars B, King M, Lewis G, Pearson RM, et al. Depression and self-harm from adolescence to young adulthood in sexual minorities compared with heterosexuals in the UK: a population-based cohort study. Lancet Child Adolesc Heal [Internet]. 2019 Feb 1 [cited 2019 Jun 11];3(2):91–8. Available from: sciencedirect.com 

  17. Laurens KR, Cullen AE. Toward earlier identification and preventative intervention in schizophrenia: evidence from the London Child Health and Development Study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2019 Jun 7];51:475–91. Available from: link.springer.com

  18. Jones A, Robinson E, Oginni O, Rahman Q, Rimes KA. Anxiety disorders, gender nonconformity, bullying and self-esteem in sexual minority adolescents: prospective birth cohort study. J Child Psychol Psychiatry [Internet]. 2017 Nov 1 [cited 2019 Jun 7];58(11):1201–9. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  19. Thorne N, Witcomb GL, Nieder T, Nixon E, Yip A, Arcelus J. A comparison of mental health symptomatology and levels of social support in young treatment seeking transgender individuals who identify as binary and non-binary. Int J Transgenderism [Internet]. 2018 May 8 [cited 2019 Jun 11];1–10. Available from: tandfonline.com

  20. Rimes KA, Goodship N, Ussher G, Baker D, West E. Non-binary and binary transgender youth: Comparison of mental health, self-harm, suicidality, substance use and victimization experiences. Int J Transgenderism [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2019 Jun 10]; Available from: tandfonline.com 

  21. Mark KM, McNamara KA, Gribble R, Rhead R, Sharp M-L, Stevelink SAM, et al. The health and well-being of LGBTQ serving and ex-serving personnel: a narrative review. Int Rev Psychiatry [Internet]. 2019 Jan 2 [cited 2019 Jun 25];31(1):75–94. Available from: tandfonline.com

Mental ill health in the UK armed forces

  • 4,214 or 2.7% of UK armed forces personnel were assessed with a mental disorder in 2018/19 (1) 

  • In 2016/17, over 24,000 ex-service personnel used primary care NHS therapeutic services in England, a 15.4% increase on the previous year (2) 
    Note: Primary care services are those which can be accessed through a GP, or self-referral, and don’t require a specialist referral

  • NHS England spends £6.4 million per year on bespoke mental health services for ex-service personnel, in addition to the £11.4 billion spending on mental health for the general population (2) 

  • Stigma is a frequently reported barrier to help-seeking. Armed forces personnel fear differential treatment from unit leaders, being labelled ‘weak’ or ‘malingerers’, or becoming ‘non-deployable’ (3–5) 
    Note: A malingerer is defined as a person who pretends to be ill to avoid having to work

  • Up to 71% of military personnel who experience mental ill health don’t seek professional help (6,7) 

  • Although reported mental health issues doubled in the UK armed forces between 2005-2014, only 1 in 20 ex-service personnel experiencing symptoms of mental ill health sought help (8) 

  • 84% of ex-service personnel reporting psychological issues did not access professional help (8) 

  • 62% of males and 46% of females in the UK armed forces were identified as drinking hazardous amounts of alcohol (9) 

  • Service personnel are 2-5 times more likely to be dependent on alcohol than the general population (8,10,11) 

  • 1 in 10 ex-service personnel has an issue with alcohol misuse, equivalent to 270,000 people (8) 

  • Ex-service personnel with problematic alcohol intake are less likely to seek medical advice, and more likely to avoid seeking help due to stigma or self-stigma (8) 
    Note: More information about veterans’ reasons for not seeking help for alcohol-related issues can be found in (12)

  • Exposure to combat and traumatic events during service significantly increases the risk of violent offending (13,14) 

  • Ex-service personnel with mental health issues, particularly PTSD, often present with comorbid problems of anger and aggression (15) 

  • While the UK armed forces does not tolerate domestic violence, 3.6% report family violence and 7.8% report stranger violence immediately following return from deployment (16–18) 

  • Approximately 4% of the prison population in the UK are former members of the armed forces (19) 

  • In 2015 it became a requirement for all prisons to ask whether new inmates have served in the armed forces (20) 

  • On arrival into prison, ex-service personnel were as likely as the general prisoner population to report problems around issues such as alcohol (17%) and mental health (15%) (21) 

  • Ex-service personnel are more likely to report feeling depressed or suicidal on arrival into prison (18% compared to 14%) (21)  

  • Compared to those who have not served, ex-service personnel in the criminal justice system are more likely to present with anxiety disorders and hazardous drinking patterns, and less likely to present with schizophrenia and substance misuse (22) 

  • The annual suicide rate for the UK armed forces is significantly lower than the UK general population (23) 

  • Male suicide rates over the last 20 years are:

    • 10 per 100,000 in the Army 

    • 8 per 100,000 in the Naval service 

    • 5 per 100,000 in the RAF (23) 

  • In 2017, the suicide rate among males aged 16—59 years in the UK armed forces was 9 per 100,000, compared to 19 per 100,000 in the UK general population (23) 

  • The risk of suicide for men aged 24 or younger who have left the armed forces is between two and three times higher than for men the same age who haven’t served in the military (24) 

  • Suicide risk is associated with younger age at discharge, male gender, Army service, lower rank, not being married, and length of service of 4 years or less (24,25) 

  • Ex-service personnel who identify as LGBT+ are more likely to have suicidal thoughts, and attempt suicide, than those who do not identify as LGBT+ (26) 

  • 2.3% of UK armed forces personnel report ever having self-harmed, compared to 7.3% in the general population (10,27) 

  • Self-harm is more common in ex-service personnel, young people, women, LGBT+ community, prisoners, asylum seekers, and people who have experienced physical, emotional or sexual abuse (36) 

  • Reported rates of self-harm in the UK armed forces remain low at 3.1 per 1000 personnel in 2017/18 (28) 

  • Between 2010/11–2017/18, those at highest risk of self-harm in the UK forces were: Army personnel, females, non-officer ranks, personnel aged under 25 and untrained personnel (28) 

  • Between 2010/11 and 2017/18 there were more self-harm incidents in the Army than in the Navy or RAF (28) 
    Note: As measured by tests of statistical significance, Army personnel had significantly higher rates of self-harm than the other Services in each of the eight years between 2010/11 and 2017/18. There was no significant difference in rates between Naval Service and RAF personnel over the same time period (28)

  • Risk factors for self-harm reflect those of the general population – they are not deployment related (27)  

  • Using alcohol or drugs increases the risk of self-harm (29,30) 

  • People who identify as LGBT+ are at increased risk of developing anxiety disorders (31,32) 

  • The symptoms of adjustment disorder include: depressed mood, behaviour changes, outbursts of violence, anxiety, worry, feeling unable to cope, plan ahead, or continue in the present situation, and difficulty in day-to-day living (33–35) 

  • The symptoms of adjustment disorder arise gradually, within a month after a stressful event. They rarely lasts longer than six months (33,34) ​ 

  • Adjustment disorders accounted for 30% of all mental disorders in the armed forces in 2018/19 (1) 

  • Rates of adjustment disorders in the UK armed forces were significantly higher than for all other mental disorders between 2007/8 and 2015/16 (1) 

  • Higher rates in the armed forces vs the general population may reflect the impact of service life with routine postings and operational tours (1) 

  • In 2018/19, PTSD accounted for 7% of all mental disorders diagnosed in UK armed forces personnel, with the highest percentages in the Army and Royal Marines (1) 

  • In 2018/19, PTSD risk increased by 170% for service personnel previously deployed to Iraq and/or Afghanistan (1) 

  • Diagnosis of PTSD in the UK armed forces remained low at around 2 in 1000 personnel in 2018/19 (1) 

  • A study of 100 women caring for a partner with service-related PTSD found: 45% misused alcohol, 39% had depression, 37% had anxiety, and 17% showed symptoms of PTSD (36) 

 

 

  1. Ministry of Defence. UK Armed Forces Mental Health: Annual Summary & Trends Over Time, 2007/08 - 2018/19 [Internet]. Bristol; 2019 [cited 2019 Jun 21]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  2. Ministry of Defence. The Armed Forces Covenant Annual Report 2017 [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2018 Jan 8]. Available from: gov.uk

  3. Sharp M-L, Fear NT, Rona RJ, Wessely S, Greenberg N, Jones N, et al. Stigma as a Barrier to Seeking Health Care Among Military Personnel With Mental Health Problems. Epidemiol Rev [Internet]. 2015 [cited 2017 Dec 8];37:144–62. Available from: kcl.ac.uk

  4. Coleman SJ, Stevelink SAM, Hatch SL, Denny JA, Greenberg N. Stigma-related barriers and facilitators to help seeking for mental health issues in the armed forces: a systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative literature [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2018 Jan 18]. Available from: kcl.ac.uk

  5. Rafferty L, Stevelink, Sharon A. M., Greenberg, Neil, Wessely, Simon. Stigma and barriers to care in service leavers with mental health problems [Internet]. London; 2017 [cited 2017 Dec 8]. Available from: kcl.ac.uk

  6. Hom MA, Stanley IH, Schneider ME, Joiner TE. A systematic review of help-seeking and mental health service utilization among military service members. Clin Psychol Rev [Internet]. 2017 Apr 1 [cited 2019 Jun 21];53:59–78. Available from: sciencedirect.com

  7. Stevelink SAM, Jones N, Jones M, Dyball D, Khera CK, Pernet D, et al. Do serving and ex-serving personnel of the UK armed forces seek help for perceived stress, emotional or mental health problems? Eur J Psychotraumatol [Internet]. 2019 [cited 2019 Jun 21];10(1). Available from: tandfonline.com

  8. The Royal British Legion. A UK Household Survey of the Ex-Service Community [Internet]. 2014 [cited 2018 Jan 9]. Available from: compasspartnership.co.uk 

  9. Ministry of Defence. Alcohol Usage in the UK Armed Forces 1 June 2016 to 31 May 2017 [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2018 Jan 9]. Available from: gov.uk

  10. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk  

  11. Fear NT, Iversen A, Meltzer H, Workman L, Hull L, Greenberg N, et al. Patterns of drinking in the UK Armed Forces. Addiction [Internet]. 2007 Nov 1 [cited 2019 Jun 21];102(11):1749–59. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  12. Kiernan MD, Osbourne A, McGill G, Jane Greaves P, Wilson G, Hill M. Are veterans different? Understanding veterans’ help-seeking behaviour for alcohol problems. Health Soc Care Community [Internet]. 2018 Sep 1 [cited 2019 Jun 21];26(5):725–33. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  13. Macmanus D, Dean K, Jones M, Rona RJ, Greenberg N, Hull L, et al. Violent offending by UK military personnel deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan: a data linkage cohort study. Lancet [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2018 Jan 10];381:907–17. Available from: thelancet.com

  14. Macmanus D, Rona R, Dickson H, Somaini G, Fear N, Wessely S. Aggressive and Violent Behavior Among Military Personnel Deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan: Prevalence and Link With Deployment and Combat Exposure. 2015 [cited 2018 Jan 11]; Available from: kcl.ac.uk

  15. Turgoose D, Murphy D, Turgoose D, Murphy D. Anger and aggression in UK treatment-seeking veterans with PTSD. Healthcare [Internet]. 2018 Jul 21 [cited 2019 Jun 21];6(3):86. Available from: mdpi.com 

  16. Kwan J, Jones M, Somaini G, Hull L, Wessely S, Fear NT, et al. Post-deployment family violence among UK military personnel. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2017 Dec 19 [cited 2018 Feb 5];1–11. Available from: cambridge.org

  17. Ministry of Defence. JSP 913: Tri-Service Policy on Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence [Internet]. 2015 [cited 2019 Jun 21]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  18. Ministry of Defence. No Defence for Abuse: Domestic Abuse Strategy 2018 - 2023 [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jun 21]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk 

  19. Ministry of Justice. Experimental Statistics: Ex-service personnel in the prison population, England and Wales [Internet]. London; 2018 [cited 2019 Jun 21]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk 

  20. Ministry of Justice. More support for veterans in the criminal justice system - GOV.UK [Internet]. 2014 [cited 2018 Feb 2]. Available from: gov.uk

  21. HM Inspectorate of Prisons. People in prison: Ex-service personnel [Internet]. 2014 [cited 2018 Jan 19]. Available from: justiceinspectorates.gov.uk 

  22. Short R, Dickson H, Greenberg N, MacManus D. Offending behaviour, health and wellbeing of military veterans in the criminal justice system. West JC, editor. PLoS One [Internet]. 2018 Nov 9 [cited 2019 Jun 21];13(11):e0207282. Available from: dx.plos.org 

  23. Ministry of Defence. Suicides in the UK Regular Armed Forces: Annual Summary and Trends Over Time: 1 January 1984 to 31 December 2018 [Internet]. Bristol; 2019 [cited 2019 Jun 24]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  24. Kapur N, While D, Blatchley N, Bray I, Harrison K. Suicide after Leaving the UK Armed Forces —A Cohort Study [Internet]. 2009 [cited 2018 Feb 22]. Available from: eprints.uwe.ac.uk 

  25. Harden L, Murphy D. Risk factors of suicidal ideation in a population of UK military veterans seeking support for mental health difficulties. J R Army Med Corps [Internet]. 2018 Sep 1 [cited 2019 Jun 25];164(5):352–6. Available from: jramc.bmj.com 

  26. Mark KM, McNamara KA, Gribble R, Rhead R, Sharp M-L, Stevelink SAM, et al. The health and well-being of LGBTQ serving and ex-serving personnel: a narrative review. Int Rev Psychiatry [Internet]. 2019 Jan 2 [cited 2019 Jun 13];31(1):75–94. Available from: tandfonline.com

  27. Hines LA, Jawahar K, Wessely S, Fear NT. Self-harm in the UK military [Internet]. Occupational Medicine. 2013 [cited 2018 Feb 6]. Available from: kcl.ac.uk

  28. Ministry of Defence. Deliberate Self Harm (DSH) in the UK Armed Forces 1 April 2010 – 31 March 2018 [Internet]. Bristol; 2019 [cited 2019 Jun 25]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  29. Moller CI, Tait RJ, Byrne DG. Deliberate self-harm, substance use, and negative affect in nonclinical samples: A systematic review. Subst Abus [Internet]. 2013 Apr [cited 2019 Jun 25];34(2):188–207. Available from: tandfonline.com

  30. Ness J, Hawton K, Bergen H, Cooper J, Steeg S, Kapur N, et al. Alcohol use and misuse, self-harm and subsequent mortality: an epidemiological and longitudinal study from the multicentre study of self-harm in England. Emerg Med J [Internet]. 2015 Oct [cited 2016 Dec 1];32(10):793–9. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov 

  31. Plöderl M, Tremblay P. Mental health of sexual minorities. A systematic review. Int Rev Psychiatry [Internet]. 2015 Sep 3 [cited 2019 Jun 13];27(5):367–85. Available from: tandfonline.com

  32. Bouman WP, Claes L, Brewin N, Crawford JR, Millet N, Fernandez-Aranda F, et al. Transgender and anxiety: A comparative study between transgender people and the general population. Int J Transgenderism [Internet]. 2017 Jan 2 [cited 2019 Jun 13];18(1):16–26. Available from: tandfonline.com

  33. Wilson S. Synopsis of Causation Adjustment Disorder. 2008 [cited 2018 Jan 30]; Available from: gov.uk

  34. World Health Organization. The ICD-10 Classification of Mental and Behavioural Disorders Diagnostic criteria for research [Internet]. 1993 [cited 2017 Jun 1]. Available from: who.int

  35. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [Internet]. American Psychiatric Association; 2013 [cited 2018 Oct 15]. Available from: psychiatryonline.org

  36. Murphy D, Palmer E, Busuttil W. Mental health difficulties and help-seeking beliefs within a sample of female partners of UK veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. J Clin Med [Internet]. 2016 Aug 1 [cited 2019 Jun 25];5(8):68. Available from: mdpi.com 

Mental ill health in higher education students

  • 27-29% of students report clinical levels of psychological distress (1,2)

  • In 2014, 130 students (full time, aged 18+) completed suicide in England (3)

  • In 2015, female suicide rates increased in England to their highest levels since 2005 (4)

 

  1. Bewick BM, Gill J, Mulhern B, Barkham M, Hill AJ. Using electronic surveying to assess psychological distress within the UK student population: a multi-site pilot investigation. E-Journal Appl Psychol [Internet]. 2008 Dec 23 [cited 2016 Dec 2];4(2):1–5. Available from: sensoria.swinburne.edu.au

  2. YouGov. One in four students suffer from mental health problems [Internet]. 2016. Available from: yougov.co.uk

  3. Office for National Statistics. Suicides in the United Kingdom: 2015 registrations [Internet]. 2016. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  4. Office for National Statistics. Total number of deaths by suicide or undetermined intent for students aged 18 and above in England and Wales [Internet]. 2016. Available from: ons.gov.uk

Depression

  • Depression is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide and a major contributor to suicide and coronary heart disease (1–4)

  • 24% of women and 13% of men in England are diagnosed with depression in their lifetime (5) 

  • Depression often co-occurs with other mental health issues (6-8)

  • Depression occurs in 2.1% of young people aged 5-19 (9) 

  • In 2017, 0.3% of 5-10 year old children met clinical criteria for depression, as did 2.7% of 11-16 year olds and 4.8% of 17-19 year olds (9) 

  • Major depression is more common in females than in males (9) 

  • Up to 90% of children and young people recover from depression within the first year (10) 

 

  1. Whiteford HA, Degenhardt L, Rehm J, Baxter AJ, Ferrari AJ, Erskine HE, et al. Global burden of disease attributable to mental and substance use disorders: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. Lancet (London, England) [Internet]. 2013 Nov 9 [cited 2016 Dec 1];382(9904):1575–86. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. Vos T. Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 310 diseases and injuries, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015. Lancet [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2017 Nov 29];388(388):1545–602. Available from: thelancet.com

  3. Chesney E, Goodwin GM, Fazel S. Risks of all-cause and suicide mortality in mental disorders: a meta-review. World Psychiatry [Internet]. 2014 Jun 1 [cited 2017 Jul 10];13(2):153–60. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  4. Correll CU, Solmi M, Veronese N, Bortolato B, Rosson S, Santonastaso P, et al. Prevalence, incidence and mortality from cardiovascular disease in patients with pooled and specific severe mental illness: a large-scale meta-analysis of 3,211,768 patients and 113,383,368 controls. World Psychiatry [Internet]. 2017 Jun 1 [cited 2018 Apr 24];16(2):163–80. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  5. Craig R, Fuller E, Mindell J (Eds). Health Survey for England 2014: Health, social care and lifestyles [Internet]. 2015. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  6. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  7.  Brent D, Maalouf F. Depressive disorders in childhood and adolescence. In: Thapar A, Pine DS, Leckman JF, Scott S, Snowling MJ, Taylor E, editors. Rutter’s Child and Adolescent Psychiatry [Internet]. 6th Edition. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Ltd; 2015 [cited 2019 Feb 15]. p. 874–92. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  8. Cullen KR, Bortnova A. Mood Disorders in Children and Adolescents. In: Fatemi SH, Clayton P, editors. The Medical Basis of Psychiatry [Internet]. 4th Edition. New York, NY: Springer New York; 2016 [cited 2019 Feb 15]. p. 371–400. Available from: link.springer.com

  9. Vizard T, Pearce N, Davis J, Sadler K, Ford T, Goodman R, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Emotional disorders [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk

  10. Thapar A, Collishaw S, Pine DS, Thapar AK. Depression in adolescence. Lancet [Internet]. 2012 Mar 17 [cited 2019 Feb 15];379(9820):1056–67. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Anxiety

  • There were 8.2 million cases of anxiety in the UK in 2013 (1)

  • Women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with anxiety (2,3)

  • 7.2% of 5-19 year olds experience an anxiety condition (4) 

  • In 2017, 3.9% of 5-10 year old children had an anxiety disorder, as did 7.5% of 11-16 year olds and 13.1% of 17-19 year olds (4)  

 

  1. Fineberg NA, Haddad PM, Carpenter L, Gannon B, Sharpe R, Young AH, et al. The size, burden and cost of disorders of the brain in the UK. J Psychopharmacol [Internet]. 2013 Sep [cited 2016 Dec 2];27(9):761–70. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. Walters K, Rait G, Griffin M, Buszewicz M, Nazareth I, Kessler R, et al. Recent Trends in the Incidence of Anxiety Diagnoses and Symptoms in Primary Care. Andersson G, editor. PLoS One [Internet]. 2012 Aug 3 [cited 2016 Dec 2];7(8):e41670. Available from: dx.plos.org

  3. Remes O, Brayne C, van der Linde R, Lafortune L. A systematic review of reviews on the prevalence of anxiety disorders in adult populations [Internet]. Vol. 6, Brain and Behavior. 2016 [cited 2016 Dec 2]. p. e00497. Available from:  doi.wiley.com

  4. Vizard T, Pearce N, Davis J, Sadler K, Ford T, Goodman R, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Emotional disorders [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk

Suicide

  • Among the general population 20.6% of people have had suicidal thoughts at some time, 6.7% have attempted suicide and 7.3% have engaged in self-harm (1)

  • 26.8% of people aged 16-24 report having had suicidal thoughts in their lifetime, a higher percentage than any other age group (1)

  • 34.6% of females and 19.3% of males aged 16-24 have had thoughts of suicide in their lifetime (1)

  • 9% of 16-24 year olds have attempted suicide in their lifetime – 5.4% of men, and 12.7% of women (1)

  • In 2017 there were 5,487 suicides in Great Britain. This means more than 15 people per day took their life. It is estimated that 10-25 times that number attempted suicide (2,3)
    Note: These statistics refer specifically to Great Britain. The figures were calculated using data from supplementary tables released as part of the ONS’s Suicides in the UK: 2017 registrations report and adding together the 2017 suicide figures from England, Scotland and Wales. 

  • In 2014, 130 students (full time, aged 18+) completed suicide in England (4)

  • In 2017, 646 people aged 10-29 died by suicide in England and Wales (2)

  • In GB, 1,770 people died in road traffic accidents in 2017/18 (5)

  • More females attempt suicide than males (6)

  • More men die by suicide: 75% male and 25% female (7)

  • Suicide is the most common cause of death for those aged 10-34 (8)

  • In 2015, female suicide rates increased in England to their highest levels since 2005 (9)

  • 80-90% of people who attempt/die by suicide have a mental health condition, but not all are diagnosed (10,11)
    Note: The best and most recently available evidence suggests that the figure is 80.8% overall (11). This research notes that this figure can vary. This depends on factors such as where the studies were conducted, which mental health conditions were examined, and how recently the study was published. Older studies tend to report higher figures, e.g. Arsenault-Lapierre and colleagues published research in 2004 which reports a figure of 87.3% (10). These studies are reviews of ‘psychological autopsy studies’ of suicide completers. The psychological autopsy method makes use of interviews with family members, medical records, and other relevant documents to assess whether the suicide completer had a mental health condition. Older studies estimated mood disorders were present in 30-90% of suicide cases (12).

  • 28% of people who complete suicide have been in contact with mental health services in the year before death (13)

  • 51.6% of people aged 16-34 who are suicidal don't seek support (1)

  • ChildLine counselling about suicidal thoughts and feelings reached the highest ever levels with 24,549 sessions in 2017/18 (14)

  • Drug and alcohol misuse increase the risk of suicide attempts and completions (15–17)

 

  1. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  2. Office for National Statistics. Suicides in the UK: 2017 registrations [Internet]. 2018. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  3. World Health Organization. Preventing Suicide: A Global Imperative [Internet]. 2014. Available from: apps.who.int

  4. Office for National Statistics. Total number of deaths by suicide or undetermined intent for students aged 18 and above in England and Wales [Internet]. 2016. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  5. Department for Transport. Reported road casualties in Great Britain: quarterly provisional estimates year ending June 2018 [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jun 24]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  6. Craig R, Fuller E, Mindell J (Eds). Health Survey for England 2014: Health, social care and lifestyles [Internet]. 2015. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  7. Office for National Statistics. Suicides in Great Britain: 2016 registrations [Internet]. 2017. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  8. Public Health England. Health Profile for England: 2018 [Internet]. 2018. Available from: gov.uk

  9. Office for National Statistics. Suicides in the United Kingdom: 2015 registrations [Internet]. 2016. Available from: ons.gov.uk

  10. Arsenault-Lapierre G, Kim C, Turecki G. Psychiatric diagnoses in 3275 suicides: a meta-analysis. BMC Psychiatry [Internet]. 2004 Nov 4 [cited 2016 Dec 1];4:37. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  11. Cho S-E, Na K-S, Cho S-J, Im J-S, Kang S-G. Geographical and temporal variations in the prevalence of mental disorders in suicide: Systematic review and meta-analysis. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2016 Jan 15 [cited 2018 May 9];190:704–13. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  12. Isometsä ET. Psychological autopsy studies--a review. Eur Psychiatry [Internet]. 2001 Nov [cited 2016 Dec 1];16(7):379–85. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  13. Appleby L, Kapur N, Shaw J, Hunt IM, Ibrahim S, Gianatsi M, et al. National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness. Annual report: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Dec 5]. Available from: research.bmh.manchester.ac.uk

  14. NSPCC, Childline. The Courage to Talk: Childline annual review 2017/18 [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Feb 15]. Available from: learning.nspcc.org.uk

  15. Hawton K, Casañas I Comabella C, Haw C, Saunders K. Risk factors for suicide in individuals with depression: a systematic review. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2013 May [cited 2016 Dec 1];147(1–3):17–28. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  16. Darvishi N, Farhadi M, Haghtalab T, Poorolajal J. Alcohol-Related Risk of Suicidal Ideation, Suicide Attempt, and Completed Suicide: A Meta-Analysis. Voracek M, editor. PLoS One [Internet]. 2015 May 20 [cited 2018 May 9];10(5):e0126870. Available from: dx.plos.org

  17. Poorolajal J, Haghtalab T, Farhadi M, Darvishi N. Substance use disorder and risk of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt and suicide death: a meta-analysis. J Public Health (Bangkok) [Internet]. 2016 Sep 17 [cited 2018 May 9];38(3):e282–91. Available from: academic.oup.com

Self-harm

  • The UK has one of the highest self-harm rates in Europe (1–3)

  • Self-harm is more common in veterans, young people, women, LGBT+, prisoners, asylum seekers, and those who’ve been abused (4)

  • Self-harming behaviours can begin at any age, but commonly start between ages 13 and 15 (5) 

  • About 18% of students aged 12-17 report self-harming at some point in their life. Self-harming is 2-3 times more common females (6) 

  • 25.7% of women and 9.7% of men aged 16-24 report having self-harmed at some point in their life (7) 

  • 18,778 children and young people were admitted to hospital for self-harm in England and Wales in 2015/16, a 14% rise from 2013/14 (8) 

  • In 2017/18, ChildLine provided 13,266 counselling sessions about self-harm across the UK (9) 

  • People who self-harm are approximately 49 times more likely to die by suicide (10) 

 

  1. Hawton K, Bergen H, Casey D, Simkin S, Palmer B, Cooper J, et al. Self-harm in England: a tale of three cities. Multicentre study of self-harm. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol [Internet]. 2007 Jul [cited 2016 Dec 2];42(7):513–21. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. Schmidtke A, Bille-Brahe U, Deleo D, Kerkhof A, Bjerke T, Crepef P, et al. Attempted suicide in Europe: rates, trends and sociodemographic characteristics of suicide attempters during the period 1989-1992. Results of the WHO/EURO Multicentre Study on Parasuicide. Acta Psychiatr Scand [Internet]. 1996 May 1 [cited 2018 Apr 24];93(5):327–38. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  3. Geulayov G, Kapur N, Turnbull P, Clements C, Waters K, Ness J, et al. Epidemiology and trends in non-fatal self-harm in three centres in England, 2000-2012: findings from the Multicentre Study of Self-harm in England. BMJ Open [Internet]. 2016 Apr 29 [cited 2018 Apr 24];6(4):e010538. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  4. Royal College of Psychiatrists. Self-harm, suicide and risk: helping people who self-harm [Internet]. 2010. Available from: rcpsych.ac.uk

  5. Morey Y, Mellon D, Dailami N, Verne J, Tapp A. Adolescent self-harm in the community: an update on prevalence using a self-report survey of adolescents aged 13–18 in England. J Public Health (Bangkok) [Internet]. 2017 Mar 1 [cited 2019 Feb 14];39(1):58–64. Available from: academic.oup.com

  6. Geulayov G, Casey D, McDonald KC, Foster P, Pritchard K, Wells C, et al. Incidence of suicide, hospital-presenting non-fatal self-harm, and community-occurring non-fatal self-harm in adolescents in England (the iceberg model of self-harm): a retrospective study. The Lancet Psychiatry. 2018 Feb 1;5(2):167–74

  7. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  8. NSPCC. Rise in children hospitalised for self-harm as thousands contact Childline | NSPCC [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2017 Jul 14]. Available from: nspcc.org.uk

  9. NSPCC, Childline. The Courage to Talk: Childline annual review 2017/18 [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Feb 15]. Available from: learning.nspcc.org.uk

  10. Hawton K, Bergen H, Cooper J, Turnbull P, Waters K, Ness J, et al. Suicide following self-harm: findings from the Multicentre Study of Self-Harm in England, 2000-2012. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2015 Apr 1 [cited 2018 Apr 24];175:147–51. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Eating disorders

  • 6.4% of people in England have experienced symptoms of an ED (1)

  • About 25% of those experiencing ED symptoms are male (2)

  • People with eating disorders are at high risk of premature death and suicide (3)

  • The peak age of onset for an eating disorder diagnosis is between 15 and 19 years (3) 

  • Up to 725,000 people in the UK have an eating disorder (4) 
    Note: 13.1% of 16-24 year olds have experienced symptoms of an eating disorder in the past year (1)

  • 0.4% of 5-19 year olds experience symptoms of an eating disorder (5) 

  • Hospital Episode Statistics data shows 2,703 people were admitted to hospital for an eating disorder in 2015/16, an 8% drop from the previous 12 months. 91% were female (6) 

  • The most common age of hospital admission for an eating disorder was 15 years for both females and males (6) 

  • Anorexia often co-occurs with other mental and physical health issues (7) 

  • The average age of onset for anorexia is 16 years (8) 

  • About 50% of patients with anorexia fully recover, about 30% improve and about 20% stay chronically ill (8,9) 

  • 0.8% of people in the UK meet criteria for bulimia (10)

  • Bulimia is more common in females (3,11,12) 

  • Bulimia is most commonly diagnosed in females aged 15-19 (3) 

  • 45% of people with bulimia recover fully, 27% improve, 23% stay chronically ill (13) 

  • Binge eating disorders is more common than anorexia or bulimia: 3.6% of people in the UK meet criteria for binge eating disorder (10) 

  • People with eating disorders are at high risk of premature death and suicide (14) 

 

  1. McManus S, Meltzer H, Brugha T, Bebbington P, Jenkins R. Adult psychiatric morbidity in England, 2007. Results of a household survey [Internet]. 2009. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  2. Sweeting H, Walker L, MacLean A, Patterson C, Räisänen U, Hunt K. Prevalence of eating disorders in males: a review of rates reported in academic research and UK mass media. Int J Mens Health [Internet]. 2015 [cited 2016 Dec 2];14(2). Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  3. Micali N, Hagberg KW, Petersen I, Treasure JL. The incidence of eating disorders in the UK in 2000-2009: findings from the General Practice Research Database. BMJ Open [Internet]. 2013 May 28 [cited 2016 Dec 2];3(5):e002646. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  4. Beat. The costs of eating disorders: Social, health and economic impact [Internet]. 2015. Available from: beateatingdisorders.org.uk

  5. Marcheselli F, McManus S, Sadler K, Vizard T, Ford T, Goodman A, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Autism spectrum, eating and other less common disorders [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk

  6. Health and Social Care Information Centre. Hospital Episode Statistics: Provisional monthly topic of interest: Eating disorders [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2017 Jul 17]. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  7. Zipfel S, Giel KE, Bulik CM, Hay P, Schmidt U. Anorexia nervosa: aetiology, assessment, and treatment. The Lancet Psychiatry [Internet]. 2015 Dec 1 [cited 2019 Feb 15];2(12):1099–111. Available from: linkinghub.elsevier.com

  8. Crow SJ, Eckert ED. Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa. In: Fatemi SH, Clayton P, editors. The Medical Basis of Psychiatry [Internet]. 4th Edition. New York, NY: Springer New York; 2016 [cited 2019 Feb 15]. p. 211–28. Available from:  link.springer.com

  9. Steinhausen H-C. The outcome of anorexia nervosa in the 20th century. Am J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2002 Aug 1 [cited 2019 Feb 15];159(8):1284–93. Available from: psychiatryonline.org

  10. Solmi F, Hotopf M, Hatch SL, Treasure J, Micali N. Eating disorders in a multi-ethnic inner-city UK sample: prevalence, comorbidity and service use. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol [Internet]. 2016 Mar 2 [cited 2019 Feb 15];51(3):369–81. Available from: link.springer.com

  11. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders [Internet]. American Psychiatric Association; 2013 [cited 2018 Oct 15]. Available from: psychiatryonline.org

  12. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Eating disorders: recognition and treatment. NICE Guideline NG69 [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 May 23]. Available from: nice.org.uk

  13. Steinhausen H-C, Weber S. The outcome of bulimia nervosa: findings From one-quarter century of research. Am J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2009 Dec 1 [cited 2017 Jul 19];166(12):1331–41. Available from: psychiatryonline.org

  14. Chesney E, Goodwin GM, Fazel S. Risks of all-cause and suicide mortality in mental disorders: a meta-review. World Psychiatry [Internet]. 2014 Jun 1 [cited 2017 Jul 10];13(2):153–60. Available from: doi.wiley.com

Psychosis and schizophrenia

  • 6% of the population say they have experienced at least one symptom of psychosis (1)

  • One study found that about 17% of young people aged 9-12 and about 7.5% of young people aged 13-18 had experienced symptoms of psychosis (2)

  • Psychosis usually first emerges in young people between the ages of 15 and 30 (3)

  • Males have a higher risk of developing schizophrenia during their lifetime (4)

  • Age of onset is lower in men (3,5,6)

  • Schizophrenia affects less than 1 in 100 people during their lifetime (7,8)

  • 38% of people recover after a first episode of psychosis, and symptoms improve for 58% of people (9)
    Note: This research reviewed rates of remission and recovery for people with first episode psychosis in 79 studies from around the world. It found that 58% of patients with first episode psychosis met criteria for remission (i.e. symptom improvement) over an average of 5.5 years, and 38% met criteria for recovery over an average of 7.2 years

  • 21st Century improvements in early intervention and treatment methods, and newer medicines, mean better recovery rates for psychosis and schizophrenia. 10 years after diagnosis:

    • 25% recovered completely from their first episode

    • 25% improved with treatment, recovery of (almost) all previous functioning and had very few relapse events

    • 25% improved, needed significant support to function normally and to get through relapse events

    • 15% led a chronic course with little or no improvement and repeated hospital stays over a prolonged part of adult life

    • 10% died, usually as a result of suicide (10)

  • Recovery is more likely if psychotic episodes are treated early (11)

 

  1. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  2. Kelleher I, Connor D, Clarke MC, Devlin N, Harley M, Cannon M. Prevalence of psychotic symptoms in childhood and adolescence: a systematic review and meta-analysis of population-based studies. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2012 Sep 9 [cited 2019 Feb 14];42(09):1857–63. Available from: journals.cambridge.org

  3. Drake RJ, Addington J, Viswanathan AC, Lewis SW, Cotter J, Yung AR, et al. How age and gender predict illness course in a first-episode nonaffective psychosis cohort. J Clin Psychiatry [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2019 Feb 14];77(3):e283-9. Available from: europepmc.org

  4. van der Werf M, Hanssen M, Köhler S, Verkaaik M, Verhey FR, RISE Investigators, et al. Systematic review and collaborative recalculation of 133 693 incident cases of schizophrenia. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2014 [cited 2018 Apr 24];44(1):9–16. Available from: cambridge.org

  5. Riecher-Rössler A, Butler S, Kulkarni J. Sex and gender differences in schizophrenic psychoses - a critical review. Arch Womens Ment Health [Internet]. 2018 Dec 16 [cited 2019 Feb 15];21(6):627–48. Available from: link.springer.com

  6. Eranti S V., MacCabe JH, Bundy H, Murray RM. Gender difference in age at onset of schizophrenia: a meta-analysis. Psychol Med [Internet]. 2013 Jan 8 [cited 2016 Dec 2];43(01):155–67. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  7. Kirkbride J, Errazuriz A, Croudace T, Morgan C, Jackson D, McCrone P, et al. Systematic Review of the Incidence and Prevalence of Schizophrenia and Other Psychoses in England. [Internet]. 2012. Available from: psychiatry.cam.ac.uk

  8. Simeone JC, Ward AJ, Rotella P, Collins J, Windisch R. An evaluation of variation in published estimates of schizophrenia prevalence from 1990─2013: a systematic literature review. BMC Psychiatry [Internet]. 2015 Dec 12 [cited 2018 Apr 24];15(1):193. Available from: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com

  9. Lally J, Ajnakina O, Stubbs B, Cullinane M, Murphy KC, Gaughran F, et al. Remission and recovery from first-episode psychosis in adults: systematic review and meta-analysis of long-term outcome studies. Br J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2017 Dec 2 [cited 2019 Feb 15];211(06):350–8. Available from: cambridge.org

  10. Torrey EF. Surviving Schizophrenia: A Family Manual. 6th ed. New York: Harper Perennial; 2013. p. 102 

  11. Santesteban-Echarri O, Paino M, Rice S, González-Blanch C, McGorry P, Gleeson J, et al. Predictors of functional recovery in first-episode psychosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Clin Psychol Rev [Internet]. 2017 Dec 1 [cited 2019 Feb 15];58:59–75. Available from: sciencedirect.com

Bipolar disorder

  • Around 2% of the population have experienced symptoms of bipolar disorder (1–3)

  • Bipolar disorder affects men and women affected equally (1) 

  • Bipolar disorder often starts between adolescence and mid-20s (4,5)

  • It can take around 6 years to receive a correct diagnosis of bipolar disorder (6,7)

 

  1. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

  2. Merikangas KR, Paksarian D. Update on Epidemiology, Risk Factors, and Correlates of Bipolar Spectrum Disorder. In: The Bipolar Book [Internet]. Oxford University Press; 2015 [cited 2016 Dec 2]. p. 21–34. Available from: oxfordmedicine.com

  3. Smith DJ, Nicholl BI, Cullen B, Martin D, Ul-Haq Z, Evans J, et al. Prevalence and Characteristics of Probable Major Depression and Bipolar Disorder within UK Biobank: Cross-Sectional Study of 172,751 Participants. Potash JB, editor. PLoS One [Internet]. 2013 Nov 25 [cited 2016 Dec 2];8(11):e75362. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  4. Ferrari AJ, Stockings E, Khoo J-P, Erskine HE, Degenhardt L, Vos T, et al. The prevalence and burden of bipolar disorder: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013. Bipolar Disord [Internet]. 2016 Aug [cited 2018 Jul 2];18(5):440–50. Available from: doi.wiley.com

  5. Bellivier F, Etain B, Malafosse A, Henry C, Kahn J-P, Elgrabli-Wajsbrot O, et al. Age at onset in bipolar I affective disorder in the USA and Europe. World J Biol Psychiatry [Internet]. 2014 Jul 21 [cited 2018 Jul 2];15(5):369–76. Available from: tandfonline.com

  6. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Bipolar disorder in adults | Guidance and guidelines | Quality standard [QS95] [Internet]. NICE; 2015 [cited 2018 Jul 2]. Available from: nice.org.uk

  7. Dagani J, Signorini G, Nielssen O, Bani M, Pastore A, Girolamo G de, et al. Meta-analysis of the interval between the onset and management of bipolar disorder. Can J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2017 Apr 26 [cited 2018 Jul 2];62(4):247–58. Available from: journals.sagepub.com

Personality disorders

  • Between 4% and 15% of people meet the diagnostic criteria for personality disorder (1,2)

 

  1. Tyrer P, Reed GM, Crawford MJ, Health D of, Kagan J, Prichard J, et al. Classification, assessment, prevalence, and effect of personality disorder. Lancet (London, England) [Internet]. 2015 Feb 21 [cited 2016 Dec 2];385(9969):717–26. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014 [Internet]. Leeds; 2016. Available from: content.digital.nhs.uk

Alcohol, drugs and mental health

  • 30-50% of people with a severe mental illness also have problems with substance use (1-3)

  • Substantial numbers of people in contact with substance misuse services have mental illness (2,4,5)

  • Drug and alcohol misuse increase the risk of suicide attempts and completions (6-8)

 

  1. Hall W, Degenhardt L, Teesson M. Reprint of “Understanding comorbidity between substance use, anxiety and affective disorders: Broadening the research base.” Addict Behav [Internet]. 2009 [cited 2016 Dec 1];34(10):795–9. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  2. Torrens M, Mestre-Pintó J, Domingo-Salvany A, EMCDDA project group. Comorbidity of substance use and mental disorders in Europe [Internet]. Lisbon, Portugal; 2015 [cited 2018 Apr 24]. Available from: emcdda.europa.eu

  3. Lai HMX, Cleary M, Sitharthan T, Hunt GE. Prevalence of comorbid substance use, anxiety and mood disorders in epidemiological surveys, 1990-2014: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Drug Alcohol Depend [Internet]. 2015 Sep 1 [cited 2016 Dec 1];154:1–13. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  4. Charzynska K, Hyldager E, Baldacchino A, Greacen T, Henderson Z, Laijärvi H, et al. Comorbidity patterns in dual diagnosis across seven European sites. Eur J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2011 [cited 2016 Dec 1];25(4):179–91. Available from: scielo.isciii.es

  5. Weaver T, Madden P, Charles V, Stimson G, Renton A, Tyrer P, et al. Comorbidity of substance misuse and mental illness in community mental health and substance misuse services. Br J Psychiatry [Internet]. 2003 [cited 2016 Dec 1];183(4):304–13. Available from: bjp.rcpsych.org

  6. Hawton K, Casañas I Comabella C, Haw C, Saunders K. Risk factors for suicide in individuals with depression: a systematic review. J Affect Disord [Internet]. 2013 May [cited 2016 Dec 1];147(1–3):17–28. Available from: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

  7. Darvishi N, Farhadi M, Haghtalab T, Poorolajal J. Alcohol-related risk of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, and completed suicide: A meta-analysis. Voracek M, editor. PLoS One [Internet]. 2015 May 20 [cited 2018 May 9];10(5):e0126870. Available from: dx.plos.org

  8. Poorolajal J, Haghtalab T, Farhadi M, Darvishi N. Substance use disorder and risk of suicidal ideation, suicide attempt and suicide death: a meta-analysis. J Public Health (Bangkok) [Internet]. 2016 Sep 17 [cited 2018 May 9];38(3):e282–91. Available from: academic.oup.com

Cyberbullying

  • Girls are more likely to experience cyberbullying than boys (1-3)

  • 21.2% of young people aged 11-19 report being cyberbullied in the past year (3)

  • Cyberbullying-related contacts to ChildLine went up by 12% in 2016/17 (4) 

 

  1. Brooks F, Chester K, Klemera E, Magnusson J. Cyberbullying: An analysis of data from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey for England, 2014 [Internet]. London; 2017 [cited 2018 Oct 15]. Available from: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  2. Przybylski AK, Bowes L. Cyberbullying and adolescent well-being in England: a population-based cross-sectional study. Lancet Child Adolesc Heal [Internet]. 2017 Sep 1 [cited 2018 Oct 15];1(1):19–26. Available from: sciencedirect.com

  3. Marcheselli F, Brodie E, Yeoh SN, Pearce N, McManus S, Sadler K, et al. Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2017: Behaviours, lifestyles and identities [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2019 Jan 7]. Available from: digital.nhs.uk

  4. NSPCC. How safe are our children? The most comprehensive overview of child protection in the UK [Internet]. 2017. Available from: nspcc.org.uk


Statistics packs for MHFA England courses

Click to download PDF:

Adult Mental Health Aware Half Day statistics

Adult MHFA One Day statistics 

Adult MHFA Two Day statistics

Armed Forces Two Day statistics

Higher Education One Day statistics

Youth Mental Health Aware Half Day (Youth Lite) statistics

Youth MHFA One Day statistics

Youth MHFA Two Day statistics

Fact sheet: Mental ill health in LGBT+ and BAME communities