DrBanneker
Space is the Place
Antidepressant Use Among Adults: United States, 2015-2018
I monitor CDC releases and this study kind of went under the radar due to the bigger stories of the election and COVID. Basically antidepressant use has surged up over the last decade. 2018 numbers show it is particular bad for women, though thankfully Black women have managed to do much better on this front.
18% of women over 18--and a crazy 22% of White women over 18 (almost one-quarter)--use antidepressants fairly regularly. That number drops to 10% for Black women and less for Hispanics and Asians. It is most weighted towards older ages so though it is only 10% in the 18-39 group the jump to 20% after 40 indicates it probably ramps up substantially in the 30s.
It also slightly increases with education. Though race/age are not broken out, the trends would seem to indicate that about 1 out of every 10 young White women (20s and 30s) and 1 out of every 20 young Black women is on these meds. Male use is lower amongst every measure.
Unfortunately I see Black folks' numbers converging like other things over time so people take care of your mental and physical health. Sometimes I wonder if withdrawal from these is why so many freaking people act crazy.
Figure 1. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by age and sex: United States, 2015–2018
Figure 2. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by race and Hispanic origin and sex: United States, 2015–2018
Figure 3. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by education level and sex: United States, 2015–2018
I monitor CDC releases and this study kind of went under the radar due to the bigger stories of the election and COVID. Basically antidepressant use has surged up over the last decade. 2018 numbers show it is particular bad for women, though thankfully Black women have managed to do much better on this front.
18% of women over 18--and a crazy 22% of White women over 18 (almost one-quarter)--use antidepressants fairly regularly. That number drops to 10% for Black women and less for Hispanics and Asians. It is most weighted towards older ages so though it is only 10% in the 18-39 group the jump to 20% after 40 indicates it probably ramps up substantially in the 30s.
It also slightly increases with education. Though race/age are not broken out, the trends would seem to indicate that about 1 out of every 10 young White women (20s and 30s) and 1 out of every 20 young Black women is on these meds. Male use is lower amongst every measure.
Unfortunately I see Black folks' numbers converging like other things over time so people take care of your mental and physical health. Sometimes I wonder if withdrawal from these is why so many freaking people act crazy.
Figure 1. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by age and sex: United States, 2015–2018
Figure 2. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by race and Hispanic origin and sex: United States, 2015–2018
Figure 3. Percentage of adults aged 18 and over who used antidepressant medication over past 30 days, by education level and sex: United States, 2015–2018
